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LIFE STORIES FOR TOUNG PEOPLE 



FREDERICK THE GREAT 



LIFE STORIES FOR TOUNG PEOPLE 



FREDERICK THE GREAT 



LIFE STORIES FOR YOUNG 
PEOPLE 

Translated from the German by 
GEORGE P. UPTON 

8 Vols. Ready 

Beethoven William Tell 

Mozart The Little Dauphin 

Bach Frederick the Great 

Maid of Orleans Maria Theresa 

Each, ivith ^ Illustrations, 6o cents net 




A 



FTER the battle at Kollin 



Life Stories for Toung People 



FREDERICK THE 
GREAT 

AND 

THE SEVEN YEARS' WAR 

"translated from the German of 
Ferdinand Schrader 

BY 

GEORGE P. UPTON 

Translator of ^^ Memories,'''' author of ^^ Upton Handbooks on 

Musky'''' editor " Autobiography of Theodore 

Thomas y^'' etc., etc. 

WITH FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS 




CHICAGO 
A. C. McCLURG Js* CO. 

1905 



I Two Oopiss iiecetmi 



3^ 



Copyright 

A. C. McClurg & Co. 

1905 

Published September 16, 1905 



THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A. 



Cran^Xator'^ Ij^vttutt 



p — j r-^HIS little volume deals only with seven 
years in the life of Frederick the Great, 
but they were seven of the most memor- 
able years in the history of Austria and 



^ Prussia — the period of the Seven Years' War, 
which confirmed to Frederick the possession of 
Silesia, and elevated Prussia to the first rank among 
European states. Three times Frederick waged war 
for its possession: the first time, in 1740-42, with 
Saxony, Bavaria, and France for allies against Austria 
and Great Britain; the second time, in 1744-45, 
when Austria was aided by Saxony ; and the third 
time, in 1756-63, when Prussia, aided by some of 
the small German states and British subsidies, fought 
Austria, France, Russia, Sweden, and Saxony. The 
** Seven Years' War was one of the greatest and most 
destructive wars of the eighteenth century, both to 

-victors and vanquished.*^ Frederick and his allies 
met with but five defeats in this war, — Kollin, 
Hastenbeck, Gross] agerndorf, Hochkirch, and Kun- 
ersdorf, — the last a most crushing defeat ; but they 

*' won ten great victories, Lobositz, Prague, Rossbach, 
Leuthen, Zorndorf, Minden, Liegnitz, Torgau, 
Burkersdorf, and Freiberg ; and in eight of these 
Frederick commanded in person, and in every case 



^TRANSLATOR'S PREFACED 

with a much smaller force than that of his enemies. 

*^ Peace was finally made with Maria Theresa in 1763, 
and by a clear violation of ancient faith and treaty 
rights Silesia was taken from her. The various 
campaigns are described briefly and yet in such a 
manner that the interest of the narrative is kept up 
to the last, and the author, by the introduction of 
anecdotes, conversations, and fragments of letters, 

* brings out very clearly the peculiar traits of the 
great king — his courage at one time, his despond- 
ent moods at others, his obstinacy and self-conceit, 
which more than once involved him in disaster, 
his humor and satire, his cruelty at times to his 
own troops, and again his fatherly relations to them. 
It is also a thrilling period of history with which 
the author deals, and replete with national as well 
as individual interest. Of the close of this great 
and sanguinary war, Macaulay says, — and he was 
not an admirer of Frederick, — " The proud and 
revengeful spirit of the Empress-Queen at length 
gave way; and in February, 1763, the peace of 
Hubertsburg put an end to the conflict which 
had during seven years devastated Germany. The 
king ceded nothing. The whole Continent in arms 
had proved unable to tear Silesia from that iron 
grasp. The war was over. Frederick was safe. 
His glory was beyond the reach of envy. If he 
had not made conquests as vast as those of Alex- 

[vi] 



^TRANSLATOR'S PREFACED 

ander, of Caesar, and of Napoleon, — if he had not, 
on field of battle, enjoyed the constant success of 
Marlborough and Wellington, — he had yet given 
an example unrivalled in history, of what capacity 
and resolution can effect against the greatest supe- 
riority of power and the utmost spite of fortune." 

G, P. U. 

Chicago, 1905 



[vii] 



€anttnt^ 



I The First Battle of the War . 13 

II The Battle of Prague . . . . 18 

III Frederick's Defeat and Seydlitz's 

Surprise 24 

IV The Brilliant Victory at Ross- 

bach 35 

V Frederick at Leuthen and Lissa 39 

VI The Siege of Olmutz .... 48 
VII Seydlitz saves the Day at Zorn- 

dorf 60 

VIII Frederick's Defeat at Hochkirch 68 
IX The Most Dreadful Day in Fred- 
erick's Life 78 

X The Battle of Liegnitz ... 92 
XI The Victory at Torgau surprises 

Frederick 98 

XII The Camp at Bunzelwiltz . . . 117 

XIII The Dawn of Peace 128 

XIV End of the Seven Years' War . 136 
Appendix 145 



After the battle at Kollin .... Frontispiece 

Facing page 

" Good-evening, gentlemen, evidently you 

were not expecting me " 46 

" Frederick stood on the bloody field like 

one dazed" 84 

Frederick at the watch fire before the battle 

of Liegnitz 96 



Chapter I 
The First Battle of the War 

WHAT a glorious period of peace Ger- 
many enjoyed after the furious storms 
of war had devastated its flourishing 
provinces and brought ruin and death 
into so many homes ! Prussia at this time had to 
stand the brunt of the storm, and had it not been 
for the indomitable spirit and great military skill of 
Frederick the Great, nothing could have saved the 
young kingdom from being forced back within the 
limits of its original territory. It was not the fault 
of its enemies that the effort failed. They left noth- 
ing undone to humiliate and subdue Prussia. 

Maria Theresa was never reconciled to the loss 
of Silesia, which had been taken from her by Fred- 
erick in the preceding war with Austria. They said 
that she shed tears whenever she saw a Silesian. 
Cherishing such a strong attachment, it is not re- 
markable that the high-spirited Empress busied 

[13] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

herself with schemes for the recovery of her lost 
province. With this purpose in view, she made 
secret treaties with Russia, France, and Sweden, and 
was also assured of the help of Saxony and many of 
the German imperial princes. Thus united, the 
plan was made to seize Prussia and reduce it to its 
old limits of the Mark of Brandenburg,^ at the same 
time allotting Silesia to Austria, Westphalia to 
France, the bishopric of Magdeburg to Saxony, 
Pomerania to Sweden, and Prussia to Russia ; but 
Frederick's sharp eyes discovered the designs of his 
enemies at an early stage in the game. Two traitors 
assisted him. * Wenzel, a secretary in Dresden, and 
Weingarten, an attache of the Austrian embassy 
in Berlin, were paid for warning him of the impend- 
ing danger. 

Frederick quietly and speedily formed his coun- 
terplans. He strengthened his army, concluded a 
subsidy agreement with England — which at that 
time was under the Hanoverian dynasty — and also 
secured promise of help from some of the German 
princes, particularly the dukes of Brunswick and 



1 The Mark or Margravate of Brandenburg was the beginning of the Kingdom 
of Prussia. The Nordmark, now in Saxony, was founded by Henry I in 928 to 
preserve certain German territory. In 11 34 it was granted to Albert, who took 
the title of Margrave of Brandenburg. The mark was gradually extended during the 
next three centuries, and in 161 8 the Duchy of Prussia was united to it. During the 
reign of Frederick William, the ** Great Elector," it was largely developed, and in 
1 700 it became the Kingdom of Prussia. 

[H] 



^ FIRST BATTLE OF THE WAR ^ 

Gotha and the Elector of Hesse-Cassel. With this 
comparatively small array he boldly prepared to 
oppose his powerful enemies. His motto was 
" Nothing venture, nothing have." He quietly 
placed his army upon a war footing, concentrated 
it at a given point, and then gave the order to 
march into Saxony.-^ 

Frederick's army invaded that beautiful and fruit- 
ful country in three divisions, while Field-Marshal 
Schwerin, with a fourth, occupied Bohemia. In a 
few days its most important cities were in his pos- 
session. The invasion was effected with such star- 
tling quickness that the Elector and his family barely 
escaped being taken prisoners, but they were all 
treated with proper respect. The unexpected occu- 
pation caused great alarm all over Saxony, and the 
news of it created consternation at the Austrian 
court. Frederick was charged with bad faith and 
disturbance of the country's peace. The Emperor 
went so far as to characterize the bold intruders as 
outlaws. Frederick, however, was not disturbed. 
All that he cared for was the rupture of the alliance 
between the Elector and Austria. Not succeeding 
in this at the outset, he treated that province as an 
enemy. 

The Saxon army. In the meantime, had camped 



1 This was in the Autumn of 1756. 

D5] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATl^ 

at Pirna/ so as to be in easy communication with 
the Austrian forces, but Frederick shut them in so 
closely that they were soon in desperate straits. 
The Elector despatched messenger after messenger 
to Maria Theresa, praying for help. Alarmed at last 
by the bold operations of the King, she granted 
his requests and sent Field-Marshal Browne with 
seventy thousand men to the relief of Saxony, not 
doubting that he would crush Frederick at the first 
blow. Frederick, however, did not wait for the 
arrival of his enemy', but, dividing his force, boldly 
went out to meet him with about twenty -four thou- 
sand men, leaving the other half to watch the 
Saxons at Pirna. 

The two armies met at Lobositz on the Elbe, 
October i, 1756. The battle raged fiercely for six 
hours with little prospect of success for the Prus- 
sians, considering the superior strength of the 
enemy. Indeed, defeat at one time seemed inevi- 
table, for their ammunition was exhausted. The 
brave Duke of Bevern, however, saved the army 
from its first defeat. When told that they were out 
of powder and shot, he coolly exclaimed : " Com- 
rades, be of good courage. Charge with fixed 
bayonets ! " His gallant troops obeyed, and hurled 
themselves upon the Austrians with such impetu- 

1 Pirna is on the Elbe, twelve miles from Dresden. It suffered greatly not 
only during the Seven Years' but the Thirty Years' War. 

[16] 



^ FIRST BATTLE OF THE WAR ^ 

osity that they were soon masters of the field. 
This was the first victory in the Seven Years' War. 
Frederick was delighted, and on that same day 
wrote to Field- Marshal Schwerin : 

" I hardly need say anything to you about the 
troops. You know them. But never since I have 
had the honor to command them, cavalry as well as 
infantry, have they fought more bravely. It is easy 
to see by these brilliant achievements what they will 
do hereafter." 

The news of the victory fell like a thunderbolt 
in the ranks of the Prussian King's enemies. The 
Saxon troops at Pirna, fourteen thousand strong, 
forced by bitter necessity and half starved, laid down 
their arms. The officers were released, after pledg- 
ing themselves not to engage again in hostilities 
against Prussia. The common soldiers were 
placed at once in the Prussian army ; but they were 
of no service, as they deserted at the earliest oppor- 
tunity. The victory was followed by important 
results. It was the majestic prelude to the later 
battles of the Seven Years' War. 



[^7] 



Chapter II 
The Battle of Prague 



s: 



FREDERICK improved the winter of 1756 

Hby increasing the strength of his army and 
putting it in complete readiness for the 
ra field ; for it was evident that the enemy, 
enraged at the glorious victory at Lobositz, would 
put forth its utmost efforts to crush him. Emperor 
Francis 1/ upon the pretext that Frederick had 
broken the peace by the invasion of Saxony, induced 
the German imperial princes to place an army of sixty 
thousand men in the field, designated the Reichs 
Army. Frederick was confronted in all by half a 
million fighting men, while he could only muster the 
comparatively small force of about two hundred 
thousand. The disparity was great, and any other 
in his place would have been disheartened at once 
at the prospect before him, but Frederick did not 
waver or retreat. He relied upon his own indomi- 
table spirit, the strong attachment and devotion of 
his officers, and above all upon his valiant, well- 

1 Francis I, son of Leopold, Duke of Lorraine, married Maria Theresa in 1736 
and was elected Emperor of Austria in 1745. 

[18] 



^THE BATTLE OF PRAGUEI^ 

trained soldiers, every one of whom would have 
sacrificed his life for him. With such troops he 
could well afford to risk battle with an enemy 
greatly superior to him in numbers. 

Without unnecessary waste of time, Frederick 
invaded Bohemia in the Spring of 1757. On the 
first night of the march, he decided to lodge with a 
peasant in a village near the frontier. Everything 
requisite was sent on in advance, and a royal servant 
notified the peasant that the King would sleep there 
that night. When the time came, the peasant went M 
his door to see the sovereign and his festive array. 
After waiting for some time he saw a man in a blue 
cloak, accompanied by two officers, dismount at his 
door. He asked this person whether he was one 
of the King's people ; if so, he undoubtedly could 
be accommodated by his neighbors. 

" I am not in the service of the King," was the 
reply of the man, who was none other than Fred- 
erick himself, " but he has invited me to supper 
with him." 

" If that is the case, be so good as to come in, 
but brush off your boots, and clean up." 

Various other generals and adjutants shortly drove 
up and saluted the King. The peasant, not knowing 
what to make of it, became alarmed and retreated 
into a corner. The King noticed his movement 
and said, " Stay here, sir, until the King arrives." 

[^9] 



^ FREDERICK THE GREAT ^ 

At last the peasant began to smile in a shame- 
faced way. " I know well enough who you are/' he 
began. " You think I am a fool. This gentleman 
is the King himself." 

Frederick smiled, and then entered the hut with 
some of his generals. The peasant thereupon came 
forward, shaking his head doubtfully, and when he 
had sufficiently regained composure, said to one of 
the attendants : " That is too simple a dress for the 
King of Prussia. Surely that gentleman could not 
oppress his peasants." 

The next morning Frederick set off again in 
search of the enemy, who was in position on the 
heights around Prague. Before reaching that city, 
he had to march through the Pascopol pass. By 
way of precaution he sent one hundred and fifty 
hussars ahead to ascertain if the way was strongly 
guarded. Hearing a few shots, the hussars rode back 
to the King and reported that all the approaches 
to the city were securely defended by hussars and 
pandours (Hungarian soldiers). Frederick, who 
had already been informed to the contrary, sternly 
rebuked the commanding officer, and gave his own 
order, " Hussars ! follow me. March ! " They 
speedily brought in twenty pandours and seven 
hussars, who were found hiding in the bushes. 
The pass was difficult to travel, but it was unpro- 
tected, and on the same day the army got through 
[20] 



^THE BATTLE OF PRAGUE^ 



safely and soon reached Prague, where the attack 
was to be made. The situation seemed favorable, 
as pasture land of unusual verdure appeared to 
stretch far in the distance ; but Field-Marshal 
Schwerin advised the King to be cautious, for the 
meadow might be full of swamp-holes and bogs, in 
which cavalry and cannon might easily be mired. 
He also asked that his troops might have a short 
rest after their long and weary march ; but, once 
having formed his plans, Frederick would listen to 
no suggestion of change. 

" No, no," said he, ^' I must attack the enemy 
to-day, cost what it may. The fresher fish, the 
better fish.'' 

The old Field-Marshal, notwithstanding his dis- 
mal forebodings, exclaimed : "Well, then, the battle 
miust and shall be fought to-day. I will attack the 
Austrians here or wherever else I f^nd them." 

Frederick ordered the charge. Like the plung- 
ing billows of the sea the cavalry, with Schwerin at 
their head, hurled themselves upon the enemy ; but 
the result was just what the veteran Field-Marshal 
had feared. Cannon and cavalry were hampered 
in their movements by the swampy ground, and 
while trying to extricate themselves were also ex- 
posed to a murderous fire from the enemy's batteries 
on the surrounding heights. Whole ranks of gallant 
Prussians were mowed down. It seemed impossi- 

[21] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

ble to fill the gaps, but at this juncture, Schwerin, 
then seventy-three years of age, seized a standard 
from a captain, and with the shout, " On, children, 
on, let those who are not cowards follow me ! " 
rushed forward.^ The brave old hero, however, 
had hardly gone ten paces when he fell, mangled 
by four grapeshots. 

General ManteufFel took the standard from the 
hand of his dead friend and shouted, " Avenge the 
death of a great man ! On, my children ! Bravely 
on ! '' Nothing now could restrain the Prussians, 
who were furious with rage at the death of Schwerin. 
Notwithstanding the storm of fire which cruelly 
devastated their ranks, they heeded neither wounds 
nor death. They scaled the heights and deluged 
them with the enemy's blood. Frederick himself 
quickly ended the battle. He observed a gap in 
the enemy's centre, rushed in with three battalions, 
and held his position in the very thick of the fight. 
His soldiers fought like lions, and soon the victory 



1 ** Very certain it is, at sight of his own regiment in retreat, Feld-Marschall 
Schwerin seized the colors, as did other generals, who are not named, that day. Seizes 
the colors, fiery old man : * Heran, meine kinder * (*This way, my sons 'J, and 
rides ahead, along the straight dam again ; his * sons ' all turning and with hot repent- 
ance following. * On, my children, heran ! * Five bits of grapeshot, deadly each of 
them, at once hit the old man j dead he sinks there on his flag : and will never 
fight more. * Heran ! * storm the others with hot tears. Adjutant von Platen takes 
the flag ; Platen too is instantly shot ; but another takes it. * Heran^ on ! ' in wild 
storm of rage and grief; in a word, they manage to do the work at Sterbohol, they 
and the rest." — Carly^s ** Life of Frederick the Great^'' Book XVIII. 

[22] 



^THE BATTLE OF PRAGUE^ 

was won. But at what a cost ! Eighteen thousand 
brave Prussians were lying dead or wounded on the 
field, without counting the noble Schwerin, " who 
alone/' as Frederick said, " was worth an army of 
ten thousand men/' Such was the battle of Prague 
(May 6, 1757), one of the bloodiest struggles in the 
Seven Years' War. 



[23] 



Chapti 



ter III 

Frederick' s Defeat and Seydlitz's Surprise 



[/' — j r— ^HE Austrians fled into the city of Prague, 
which was closely invested by the Prus- 
sians and bombarded with red-hot shot. 
The people suffered greatly, and the 
prospect of approaching famine compelled them to 
make many sacrifices. The Austrian army had 
about given up everything for lost and was on the 
point of capitulating, when news reached them that 
Field- Marshal Daun, with a strong force of sixty-six 
thousand men, was on the way to their relief. Fred- 
erick marched out to meet him with thirty-two thou- 
sand men, the very flower of his army, hoping with 
this comparatively small force to check his advance. 
The two armies speedily met, and a battle began at 
Kollin. At the outset fortune favored the Prussians. 
The hussars cut their way through the enemy's lines 
so furiously that Daun was on the point of retreating. 
At this juncture, however, the King decided, in the 
very midst of the battle, to change his excellent 
original plan. Prince Moritz of Dessau and several 
other generals differed from him, and when at last 



^FREDERICK'S DEFEATS 

he announced his decision, they refused to obey, for 
they foresaw it must lead to disaster. Drawing his 
sword for the first time, he rushed up to them, 
sternly reminded them of their duty, and ordered 
them back to their commands. The result was mis- 
management and confusion in handUng the troops. 
The Austrians and Saxons took advantage of this, 
and rushed into the gaps — for the Prussians were no 
longer in solid columns — and soon were the victors. 
The latter left fourteen thousand dead and wounded 
on the field. The remainder made an orderly re- 
treat, and Daun did not venture to pursue them. 

Bitterly disappointed, Frederick raised the siege 
of Prague and fell back with his shattered army to 
Niirnberg. They were obliged to dismount many 
times on the way to water the horses, and on one 
of these occasions an old trooper brought Frederick 
a refreshing draught of water in his steel cap, and 
handing it to him, said in the heartiest way, " Drink, 
Your Majesty, and let battles be battles. You are 
living — that is good. The Almighty also lives, 
and He will give us victory again." 

The King looked at him and replied with a quiet 
smile : " Do you really think so, old fellow ? '' 

The trooper nodded assent, and soon they were 
on the march again. The King was in an unusually 
gloomy mood, and at such times no one ventured 
to disturb him. When they reached Niirnberg he 

[^5] 



I^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

went off by himself without saying a word to any- 
one, and sat down upon an old waste-pipe, where 
he remained some time in deep thought, scratching 
curious figures in the sand with a stick. Observing 
this, his officers stepped more quietly and watched 
him with much curiosity. Suddenly he rose and 
said to those about him, " Gentlemen, it is time for 
action. We must not loiter." 

Without showing any sign of his great disappoint- 
ment over his defeat, he issued the necessary com- 
mands, and his aides were at once busy in distributing 
them. Even the appearance of his splendid guard, 
which had been so sorely treated at Kollin that out 
of a thousand men only two hundred were un- 
harmed in the fight, did not disturb his composure 
in the least. 

"Children,'' he said with much feeling, "you 
have had a hard day. But have patience, dear 
friends; I will make it all right yet." 

The King's enemies were joyful over the news of 
his defeat at Kollin, and decided it would be wise to 
attack him on all sides. In the east the Russians 
invaded Prussia with one hundred thousand men. 
The Swedes, to prove their bravery, attacked Pom- 
erania, but were driven back by General Belling. 
General Lehwald, however, was less fortunate in his 
operations against the Russians, as he had an army 
of only thirty-two thousand men. He was over- 
[26] 



1^ FREDERICK'S DEFEATS 

powered in an engagement at Gross] agerndorf and 
compelled to retreat. The Russians might easily 
have advanced to Brandenburg had they followed 
up their advantage, but their General Apraxin fell 
back still nearer the eastern Prussian frontier. This 
extraordinary movement can only be explained in 
one way. Apraxin had received express orders from 
the warlike Empress Elizabeth to press operations 
with vigor, but he had also been instructed by Grand 
Duke Peter to go slow and take matters easily, for 
he much preferred to have Frederick a good neigh- 
bor in the future than an enemy. 

Thus the King's lucky star shone brightly when 
everything was darkest. He also received gratify- 
ing assurances of love and devotion from his own 
people. In Pomerania and Brandenburg they vied 
with each other in making good the losses of men 
and horses at Kollin. Frederick would have been 
delighted with these assurances had not fresh trou- 
bles overtaken him. His sorrow over the tragedy 
at Kollin was followed by bitter grief, occasioned by 
the death of a brother and his beloved mother.^ 
His great sorrow, as well as his greatness of soul, is 



1 July 5, 1757, Frederick wrote to his sister Wilhelmlna at Balreuth : '* We 
have no longer a mother. This loss puts the crown on my sorrows. I am obliged 
to act ; and have not time to give free course to my tears. Judge, I pray you, 
of the situation of a feeling heart put to so cruel a trial. All losses in the world 
are capable of being remedied 5 but those which death causes are beyond the reach 
of hope. * * 

[27] 



^FREDERICK TIIE GREATS 

shown in his letters of that time, one of which closes 
with the words, " But I, threatened with the storm, 
and notwithstanding the approaching ruin, must act, 
live, and die as a King." 

The French, meanwhile, who had crossed the 
Rhine and invaded Westphalia, one hundred thou- 
sand strong, were giving the King much trouble. His 
Anglo-German auxiliary army, led by the Duke of 
Cumberland, and much weaker than the French, 
had been utterly defeated by them at Hastenbeck 
on the Weser.^ The French now swarmed over 
Hesse, Hanover, Brunswick, and Westphalia, and 
destruction and ruin attended them wherever they 
appeared ; for it had been decided in Paris to dev- 
astate Prussia and all the provinces which had 
remained faitjiful to the King. The French army, 
which at the beginning operated in two divisions, 
was now united with the imperial troops for the 
purpose of attacking Saxony, which was held by 
Frederick. The French afterward divided again, 
at Erfurt, into two bands, one of which under 
Prince Soubise levied contributions on Gotha and 
Weimar, while the other, under Marshal d'Estrees, 
levied still heavier contributions upon the city of 
Halle. From this point, one division of troops, 
led by the Duke of Ayer, pressed forward to Hal- 



1 July 22, 1757. 
[28] 



^FREDERICK'S DEFEAT ^ 

berstadt and made inroads even as far as Magde- 
burg. Those were troublous times for the old mark. 
Frederick, who was in upper Lusatia, was informed 
of the threatening operations of the enemy. He 
hastened forward by forced marches, strengthened 
his army by the corps often thousand men at Dres- 
den under Prince Moritz, and with his comparatively 
small force advanced to the Saale by way of Grimma 
and Pegau. Bold General Seydlitz was in the 
advance with a thousand dragoons to clear the region 
of roving marauders. His brave troopers on Sep- 
tember 7 appeared before Pegau, but found the 
gate on the farther side of the stone Elster bridge 
blocked and held by a large force of the enemy. 
Seydlitz had no infantry, but he ordered a hundred 
of his dragoons, for whom no horse w^as too wild, 
no ditch too wide, and who were splendidly trained, 
to dismount. They did so and stormed the gate, 
and then, carbines in hand, the troop drove the 
enemy at a gallop through the city. Seydlitz ob- 
served an Austrian hussar regiment in battle-order 
on the other side of the city. Although greatly 
outnumbered, without an instant's delay he dashed 
through their closed ranks with such fury that he 
captured three hundred and fifty of them and hotly 
pursued the others. The flying enemy attempted 
to make a stand on the bridge at Kosen and attack 

Seydlitz, but they were quickly dispersed. 

[29] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

Meanwhile Soubise and his French generals were 
occupying the castle at Gotha, and living there in 
luxurious style. His eight thousand troops were 
quartered in the market-place and other -sections 
of the city and living upon the best of the land 
at the land's expense. Seydlitz, who was aware of 
this, decided to arrange a little surprise for them 
with the help of his merry troopers. Soubise and 
his generals were entertaining some foreign guests 
at an entertainment, for which extraordinary prepa- 
rations had been made. The tables were loaded 
with the choicest viands, and costly wines flowed in 
streams. The guests were greatly enjoying the 
superb banquet, the charm of v/hich was heightened 
by the presence of beautiful ladies, when suddenly 
Seydlitz and his hussars appeared at the gate. 
Everything was in confusion at once. The officers 
hurriedly left the festive scene, donned their gayly 
plumed hats, rushed out of the hall pell-mell, and 
fled in a panic. It never occurred to anyone, 
though they were eight thousand strong, to offer 
the slightest resistance to the little Prussian band. 

Seydlitz, who could not think of making an effec- 
tive pursuit with his few wornout soldiers, con- 
tented himself with a short chase of the French. 
Covered vnth. dust and sprinkled with foam after the 
sudden bold rush into the city, he and his officers 
laughed heartily at the deserted tables decked out 
[30] 



^FREDERICK'S DEFEATS 

so lavishly for the enemy. With lively jokes and 
many a rollicking troopers' song, the bold heroes 
refreshed themselves with the choice dishes and 
wines the duke's cooks had provided so lavishly, 
and passed the hours of the afternoon and night in 
the most hilarious and satisfied manner. An eye- 
witness says : 

^^ Only a few French soldiers were taken prison- 
ers, but an army of servants, lackeys, cooks, hair- 
dressers, actors, and chambermaids, chests full of 
perfumes and pomades, powder-boxes and hair-nets, 
parasols and dressing-gowns, as well as a mass of 
those knick-knacks which are indispensable to 
French elegance, fell into the hands of the troopers, 
who examined their plunder with astonishment and 
fared royally upon the delicacies and wines found 
among the equipages and cooks' wagons, which 
Seydlitz turned over to his troopers. The other 
stuff he sent on to the French the next day free of 
charge, as Prussian troopers had no use for it." 

Frederick, in the meantime, with his little army, 
about twenty-two thousand strong, had reached 
Erfurt, by way of Grimma and Naumburg, where 
he learned from Seydlitz that the fugitive enemy 
were occupying a strong position at Eisenach.-^ 



1 Eisenach is famous as the birthplace of Johann Sebastian Bach, the father of 
modern music. Luther also passed his early days there. Wartburg, the princely 
residence of the Grand Duke of Weimar, is there. 

[31] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

The situation was so uncertain that he decided not 
to venture far from Saxony and the Elbe. Believ- 
ing that in his position he could resist the French 
advance, he sent Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick 
with four thousand men to Halberstadt to rid its 
people of the enemy's exactions, and Prince Moritz 
of Dessau with eight thousand men into the region 
between the Mulde and Elbe to watch the move- 
ments of the Austrians. When he heard of the 
departure of these forces Soubise's courage revived. 
He decided to advance and regain his former posi- 
tion. He also plucked up courage to place himself 
at the head of his army. With his strong force of 
eight thousand men he approached Gotha. As 
soon as Seydlitz, who had been reenforced by about 
fifteen thousand men, noticed this move of the 
enemy, he fell back, and pretended to seek shelter 
in a ravine. He ordered his troopers to dismount, 
fasten their sabres to their carbines, and spread 
themselves out in a long line near their horses. 
Thus extended, with the hussars in front and the 
dragoons dismounted and in position on the hill- 
side, they presented from a distance the appearance 
of long lines of infantry. The French, believing 
the entire Prussian army was in front of them, fled 
precipitately. Seydlitz's troopers pursued them, 
and captured three officers and one hundred and fifty 
men. Truly the Prussians had no reason to fear 
[32] 



^FREDERICK'S DEFEAT ^ 

such an enemy ! As a result of the ruse, the 
French did not stop running until they were far 
away from Goth a. 

About this time the Austrian general Haddick 
made a descent upon Berlin and levied a consider- 
able war contribution, beside making a demand for 
twenty-four pairs of fine gloves, which he intended 
to present to his Empress. He obtained all that 
he demanded, including the gloves; but the Ber- 
liners showed a fine sense of humor in the trick 
they played upon him — for on his return home he 
learned that they were all for the left hand ! Fred- 
erick, who received the news of the descent when 
it was too late to prevent it, decided at least to cut 
off Haddick's return, and advanced with four thou- 
sand men to the Elbe, leaving Field-Marshal 
Keith, with five thousand men, to guard the Saale. 
Other divisions were sent to Weissenfels and 
Merseburg. After the King's withdrawal from 
Thuringia, the French and the imperial troops also 
abandoned their position at Gotha, and advanced 
to Merseburg and Leipsic with the intention of 
occupying Saxony. Keith, in the meantime, how- 
ever, had notified the King of the approach of the 
enemy, who, recognizing the danger, at once turned, 
drove the French before him, and made a halt 
between Weissenfels and Merseburg. This posi- 
tion, however, was insecure, for the greatly superior 
3 [33] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

enemy was bent upon surrounding and capturing 
the King's little force. Indeed, Soubise carried his 
audacity so far that he sent word to his King that 
Frederick could no longer escape him and. that he 
expected soon to have the honor of bringing him a 
prisoner to Paris. How bitterly he was deceived ! 



[34] 



Chapter IV 
The Brilliant Victory at Ross bach 



«s: 



nJ^REDERICK encountered the enemy at 

MRossbach,^ November 5, 1757. He could 
only oppose twenty-two thousand men to 

:a an army over sixty thousand strong. The 
disparity was great, but he relied upon his good 
fortune and the bravery of his soldiers. As was his 
invariable custom upon critical occasions, he sought 
to inspire his troops with words of encouragement. 

" The hour has come," he said to them, " when 
all that is sacred to us depends upon our bravery. 
You know that I have shared fatigue, hunger, cold, 
night-watches, and dangers with you, and you know 
that I am ready to sacrifice my life with you and for 
you. All I ask in return is the same trust and 
good-will. Act now like men, and trust in God." 

The King's simple words made a deep impression. 
His soldiers answered with an enthusiastic shout. 
" We will die with you ! " exclaimed the grizzled 
warriors, while tears rolled down their powder^ 
stained cheeks. The King was deeply moved by 
these expressions of love and devotion. He had 

* ^ A village in Saxony, nine miles southwest of Merseburg^ 

[35] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

chosen an elevated spot for his camp. The enemy- 
was exultant, for they believed it an easy task to cap- 
ture the little army, and they hastened to surround 
the site where it was camped so as to cut off escape 
in every direction. Frederick's sharp eyes watched 
their movements, but they did not appear to trouble 
him. On the other hand, he ordered his soldiers 
to eat their dinner, he and his generals at the same 
time sitting at open table. The French could not 
conceal their surprise at such recklessness. They 
were sure he was ignorant of his inevitable fate. 
They were not aware it was only a trick, for while 
part of the soldiers were eating, the others were 
getting the horses in order and artillery and ammu- 
nition in readiness. When all the preparations 
were made, and the King believed the right moment 
had come, the tents disappeared in a trice and 
the Prussians stood in marching order, ready for 
the attack. Before it began, the King noticed 
Moller, an artillery colonel, who was of great ser- 
vice to him in field operations, and who at all criti- 
cal times, when his advice was asked, invariably 
said, " Believe me. Your Majesty, my guardian 
angel says it will be all right.'* 

Moller had been assigned a very important posi- 
tion. The King had ordered his guns placed so 
that they were invisible to the enemy, and had 
hopes of good results from them. He hastened up 
[36] 



^ THE VICTORY AT ROSSBACH ^ 

to him, and placing his hand familiarly upon his 
shoulder, said, ^^ Well, Moller, what does your 
guardian angel say this time? Is everything all right? " 

'^Oh, yes. Your Majesty," he replied. "My 
angel promises victory," 

" At it, then, in God's name," answered Frederick, 
and at his signal the battle began. The artillery 
poured a terrible rain of shot into the French ranks, 
and the infantry accompanied the crashes of cannon 
with such a din of musketry that the French were 
taken completely by surprise. They had not re- 
covered from it when General Seydlitz, hurling 
his pipe into the air and shouting " Forward ! " gave 
the signal to his troopers to charge. Impetuously 
they dashed out from behind the hill, and hurled 
themselves upon the French like a thunderbolt, 
riding down and sabring everyone in their way. 
The panic-stricken enemy could offer no resistance. 
All who could, fled to escape destruction. The 
battle of Rossbach from that time on was simply a 
wild hunt. They threw away everything that might 
impede their flight. Cavalrymen dismounted, took 
off^ their great boots, and unbuckled their sabres. 
Whole battalions were taken prisoners by a few 
hussars without making any resistance, while others 
hid among the bushes or branches of trees. Few 
of them stopped until the Rhine was behind them. 
In short, it was a spectacle the like of which the 

[37] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATl^ 

world had rarely seen before. The attack began 
at two o'clock, and at nightfall not a Frenchman 
was to be seen. Two thousand of the enemy were 
left upon the field and seven thousand were cap- 
tured. Sixty-three cannon and twenty-three stand- 
ards were also taken. The Prussians lost only 
ninety-one. All Germany was jubilant over the 
victory, for the French had made themselves bitterly 
hated by their outrages. 

Immediately after the battle, the heroic King led 
his brave troops into Silesia, where the Austrians 
were once more active, having taken Breslau and 
Schweidnitz, and confident they would become 
masters of the whole province. In about a fort- 
night the Prussians reached the Oder. On the 
march thither, a fortunate event occurred. As the 
Austrians, four thousand strong, were taking the gar- 
rison of Schweidnitz to a place of imprisonment, the 
latter heard of the great victory their beloved King 
had won at Rossbach. Aroused by the news, they 
fell upon their guards and cut them down, and 
regained their freedom. Uncertain where they were 
going, they by chance met the King's army, of whose 
movements they were ignorant. Frederick, as de- 
lighted as he was surprised, cordially greeted them, 
and all considered the happy incident as a good 
omen for the future. 

" [3B] 



Chapter V 
Frederick at Leuthen and Lissa 



^ j I — ^HE main army of the Austrians, eighty 
thousand strong, held a position in the 
vicinity of Leuthen, between Breslau and 
Neumarkt. When its commander, Prince 
Carl of Lothringen, heard that the King was near 
by with thirty-six thousand men, he remarked, "That 
must be the Berlin guard parade." Frederick did not 
wait long. Regardless of the disparity between the 
two forces, he determined to measure strength with 
the Austrians, cost what it might. Under a gloomy, 
gray December sky, the King one day summoned 
his generals and thus addressed them : 

" In violation of all the rules of the art of war, I 
propose to attack this army of Prince Carl though 
it is thrice as strong as ours. It is not a question 
of the numbers of the enemy nor of the strength 
of his position. I hope we shall overcome these 
odds by the valor of our troops, and by strictly 
carrying out my plans. I must risk this action or 
all will be lost. We must beat the enemy or all of 
us must perish before his batteries. So I think, so 

[39] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

I shall act. Make my decision known to the army. 
Get it in readiness for the work soon to come. As 
for the rest, when you remember you are Prussians, 
you will certainly prove yourselves worthy of the 
»name. But if there be any among you who fear to 
share danger with me, he can have his discharge 
this evening without exposing himself to the slight- 
est reproach from me." 

The King regarded his veterans questioningly. 
One of them came forward and said : " He is a 
knave who would retire or fear to offer his life for 
his Majesty." 

" I was sure," resumed the King, " none of you 
would desert me. With your faithful aid, victory will 
be certain. Should I fall and thus be prevented 
from rewarding you for your service, the Fatherland 
will do it. Now go to your commands and give 
them this message: The regiment of cavalry which 
does not attack the enemy the instant it is ordered, 
shall be unhorsed after the battle and made a garri- 
son regiment. The regiment of infantry which 
under any circumstances hesitates in the least, shall 
lose its colors and arms, and I will cut the decora- 
tions from the uniforms. Now, good-bye, gentle- 
men. We shall soon defeat the enemy or never 
see each other again." 

Both officers and soldiers were deeply impressed 
by the King's words, and all awaited the battle of 
[40] 



5^ AT LEUTHEN AND LISSA^ 

the following day with eager expectation. The 
soldiers were so enthusiastic that they sang sacred 
hymns to the accompaniment of the field bands.^ 
As singing before battle had not previously been 
customary, one of the generals asked the King if he 
should not order the soldiers to be silent. 

" No ! '' replied the King. " With such men as 
these, God certainly will give us the victory.'' 

As the Prussians approached Leuthen, the King 
was informed that the enemy's force was as strong 
again as his own. 

" I know it," answered the dauntless hero, " but 
there is only one way out of it — conquer or perish. 
I would attack them even were they on the Zob- 
tenberg.^" Before giving the signal for the attack, 
Frederick called a hussar officer with fifty men to 
him and said : " I shall expose myself in battle to- 
day more than usual. You and your fifty men are 
to serve as my bodyguard. You must not leave 
me, and you must see to it that I do not fall into 
the hands of the canaille. If I am killed, cover 
my body with my cloak, place it in a wagon, and 

1 Carlyle, in his *< Frederick the Great,'* quotes the following verse from one of 
these hymns : 

" Grant that with zeal and skill this day I do 
What me to do behoves, what thou command'st me to; 
Grant that I do it sharp, at point of moment fit. 
And when I do it grant me good success in it." 

2 A famous solitary and massive eminence south of Leuthen, known as the 
** Magic Mountain.'* 

[41] 



§^ FREDERICK THE GREATS 

say not a word about it. Let the battle continue 
and the enemy will be beaten." 

About this time the right wing of the cavalry, 
commanded by Prince Moritz of Dessau, halted at 
a churchyard, where the Austrians had planted one 
of their strongest batteries and were firing from 
time to time upon the skirmishers, sometimes with 
serious effect. To save them from this fire, Prince 
Moritz ordered them to fall back ; but Frederick, 
when he noticed the movement, rushed up and 
cried : "Not yet ! not yet ! Those are only alarm 
shots. Children,'' turning to the skirmishers, 
"follow me." 

They promptly obeyed the King, who led them 
back to their former position and said : " Stay here. 
Have no fear. I will send help to you." 

While saying this, the enemy's cannonading was 
kept up. Prince Moritz said to the King : " It is 
too dangerous for you here. Your Majesty." 

" That is true," replied Frederick, with the 
utmost composure, " but I shall soon drive the 
Austrians back." 

The King made good his promise. The battle 
began between one and two o'clock, on the fifth 
of December, 1757. The enemy's line of battle 
stretched a mile, but Frederick was not alarmed. 
His main attack was directed against the left wing, 
and at this point the enemy's line was completely 
[42] 



^ AT LEUTHEN AND LISSA^ 

broken. A like fate overtook the right wing, which 
was simultaneously attacked. The enemy's centre 
finally gave way, and before dark the King was 
master of the field. The sanguinary struggle lasted 
only three hours, but it was one of the most brilliant 
of his victories. Twenty thousand prisoners fell 
into the hands of the Prussians, and beside these 
they captured one hundred and thirty-four cannon 
and fifty-nine standards. Frederick rewarded 
Prince Moritz on the field for his service. Draw- 
ing rein, he said to him, " I congratulate you upon 
the victory, Herr Field-Marshal " — with these 
words elevating him to that high position. The 
exhausted troops camped that night on the battle- 
field. It was a weird spectacle. All around them 
were the bodies left by the defeated Austrians, and 
the groans of the wounded made dreary night 
music. Suddenly an old grenadier loudly and jubi- 
lantly sang " Nun danket alle Gott." ^ This hymn 
of joy voiced the feelings of the soldiers, and Vv^hen 
the bands struck up, the whole army joined in the 



1 <« Nun danket alle Gott 

Mit Herzen, Mund, und Handen, 
Der grosse Dinge thut 
An uns und alien Erden.'* 

** Now thank God, one and all, 
V/ith heart, v/ith voice, with hands, 
Who wonders great hath done 
To us and to all lands.'* 

[43] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

uplifting song of thanksgiving. The effect was in- 
describable. The religious sentiment in the camp 
was unmistakable. Everyone had awaited the day 
with eager expectation. They had faced death in 
a thousand shapes, and terrible was the remem- 
brance which it left The pious soldiers passed a 
sleepless night, and left the field of victory with the 
proud 'consciousness that they had added new 
laurels to their heroic King's wreath of fame. 

While in pursuit of the enemy, Frederick with a 
little band of soldiers approached Lissa. Before ar- 
riving he learned that it swarmed with Austrians. 
The King ordered a halt, reined up his horse, and 
sent one of his aides back with instructions to 
bring up the Manteuffel and Wedell battalions of 
grenadiers, which had been left behind at the last 
moment, and to say to them that he was so well 
satisfied with their bravery, they should spend the 
night with him at his headquarters in Lissa, and 
every man beside should have a thaler. It was a 
good half-hour before the two battalions came up, 
and when they did he placed himself at their head 
and boldly rode into Lissa, where everything was 
quiet, although lights were seen in the houses on 
all sides. As the King, who appeared familiar with 
the place, rode into the spacious plaza near the 
castle, and about sixty paces from the bridge across 
the Schweidnitz, he noticed white-coats coming out 
[44] 



^ AT LEUTHEN AND LISSAJ^ 

of several of the houses with straw on their backs. 
Most of them were caught by the Prussian grena- 
diers, and some were brought before the King. 
When asked what they were doing, one of them 
replied : 

"A captain holds the other end of the bridge 
with one hundred and fifty men. He was ordered 
to strew the bridge with straw and set it afire as 
soon as the Prussians approached. So many towns- 
people have crossed, however, that the straw was 
trampled down in the mud and mire, and the 
captain threw it into the water and sent forty men 
to the stables to fetch fresh straw." 

Some of the white-coats in the meantime had 
stolen away and notified the captain of the arrival 
of the Prussians, and while the King was talking 
with the prisoners he opened a brisk fire, by which 
some of the grenadiers in the rear of the King were 
wounded. Great confusion followed. The artiller- 
ists cried, " Back ! back ! we are fired upon ! " Those 
on horseback rode near the houses, so as not to 
expose themselves to the fire of friend and enemy 
in the windows. The Prussian artillery opened fire 
at once, and the grenadiers also joined in. The 
entire city was in alarm. The Prussians were ex- 
posed to a brisk fire from the houses, to which they 
promptly replied. The tumult was great, and shouts 
and commands were confusedly mixed. The King, 

[45] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

however, remarked with the utmost composure : 
" Gentlemen, follow me. I am no stranger here." 
Thereupon he rode to the left over the drawbridge 
leading to the castle, followed by a few of his officers. 
He had hardly arrived at the castle entrance when 
several Austrian officers and attendants, with lanterns 
in their hands, ran down the steps and made an 
effort to get to their horses in the castle yard and 
escape under cover of the darkness. The King, 
dismounting, quietly confronted them and said : 
" Good-evening, gentlemen. Evidently you were 
not expecting me. Is there no room left for me ? " 

It would have been easy for them to have over- 
powered Frederick if they had had the courage, but 
the suddenness of his appearance and the confident 
tone of his voice so completely dazed them that 
they took the lanterns from the hands of their 
attendants, lit the King up the stairs, and escorted 
him to one of the finest of the rooms. The most 
distinguished of the Austrian officers introduced his 
comrades to the King, by name and rank, and all 
joined in agreeable conversation. During this time 
more Prussian officers arrived at the castle, fearing 
the King might be in danger ; but they found him 
enjoying himself mightily. He finally took leave 
of the Austrian officers, however, and they sought 
quarters in other rooms of the spacious castle. 

That same night the King's entire army arrived 
[46] 




^^ f^OOD e^-uening, gentlemen, e^vidently you 
vJT qjoere not expecting me 



^ AT LEUTHEN AND LISSA^ 

at Lissa, having been ordered there by mistake. By 
this time the Prussians had taken a great number of 
prisoners. Zieten scoured the neighborhood with 
his hussars, and drove the fugitives even into Bohe- 
mia, and pressed the enemy so closely that out of 
eighty thousand men only about seventeen thou- 
sand reached the Bohemian frontier. The King 
followed, and soon overtook Zieten by a shorter 
route. 



[47] 



Chapter VI 
The Siege of Olmiitz 



m 



^''^^HE year 1757, which had been so abun- 
dant in Prussian victories, drew to its 
close. Without remaining longer in Bo- 
hemia, the King made a forced march 



into Silesia, — where several cities and strongholds 
had again fallen into the enemy's hands, — not alone 
to drive the enemy out at that unfavorable season, 
but for the more important purpose of seeking 
winter quarters. As the Prussians were continually 
harassed on the march by the enemy's skirmishers, 
the King ordered night marches, so as to ensure the 
security of the sutlers' stores and baggage from the 
marauders. After marching all night, the army 
would halt at daybreak, the cavalry dismount, and 
the infantry sleep as much as possible under the 
circumstances. One morning the King, after dis- 
mounting, said: " How nice it would be if we had 
some schnapps ! " Several, who had bread and 
brandy, rushed up to him and offered him their little 
store. 
[48] 



^THE SIEGE OF O L M U T Z ^ 

The King smiled with genuine satisfaction at 
the generosity and self-sacrificing spirit of his 
soldiers, and said : " Children, if I could drink 
brandy I would take it with pleasure. But I thank 
you for your love, and will not forget this day 
which has been such a happy one for us all." 
Then he turned to his staff, and said : " There is 
no happier King in the world than I." He ordered 
Lieutenant-Colonel Von Wacknitz to make a list 
of his guards, and at Breslau a Friedrich d'or^ was 
given to each man. Notwithstanding these fatiguing 
marches, the King found his soldiers so eager for 
active duty that he decided to take advantage of 
their enthusiasm and attack the enemy without 
delay. Breslau, with its strong garrison of sixteen 
thousand men, surrendered, and this placed the 
King once more in possession of all Silesia except 
Schweidnitz. He now permitted his brave troops 
to go into winter quarters, as they so well deserved, 
while he spent the Winter in Breslau. 

With the first approach of Spring the King was on 
the alert. When all was in readiness for moving, 
he mustered his guard on the Schweidnitz meadows. 
As they were assembling he noticed a seven-year-old 
lad who was actively engaged in drilling a dozen 
other boys, who had sticks for horses. The King 



1 About $3.50 in our money. 

4 [49] 



^FREDERICK THE GREAT ^^ 

laughed at the sport, and after watching them a little 
while, said : " That boy will be a good soldier some 
day." The next time he observed him, he saw that 
the little leader had exerted himself so vigorously 
in making an attack that he was bleeding profusely 
from the nose. The boy, however, mounted his 
stick again and renewed the attack with vigor. 
The King called to him : " My child, go home and 
wash off the blood." 

The boy replied with much dignity : " Oh, no ! 
that won't do, for it will throw everything into dis- 
order. I am not yet killed; I am only wounded." 

The King in surprise asked, "What is your 
name?" 

" Kneuschke," replied the boy. 

" So ? And what does your father do ? " 

" He is a gardener." 

The King made a note of it, and thenceforward 
paid the gardener five thalers a month, to be ap- 
plied toward his son's education. 

Satisfactory as everything appeared, Frederick 
was not unmindful of the dangers to which he was 
exposed. He would have been willing to make 
terms of peace if this had been satisfactory, but his 
haughty enemies did not stop to consider what seri- 
ous losses their far abler adversary could inflict 
upon them, even with a smaller force. The more 
victories he won, the more implacable was their 
[so] 



^THE SIEGE OF OLMUTZ^ 

animosity toward him, and the more firmly con- 
vinced were they that sooner or later they would 
crush him ; for they were sure that he could not 
hold out long against their united strength, and 
that in the end he would have to abandon the 
struggle from mere exhaustion. The King seems 
to have divined their schemes. About this time he 
wrote to a friend : 

" What do you say to this alliance against the 
Margrave of Brandenburg? What would the great 
Elector have said if he had known that his grand- 
son would have been fighting Russians, Austrians, 
nearly all Germany, and a hundred thousand French- 
men ? I do not know whether I am strong enough 
to withstand them and whether it would be a dis- 
grace for me to submit, but I am certain that my 
enemies will gain no honor from my defeat." 

After a careful survey of the situation, the King 
decided it would not be incompatible with honor to 
offer terms of peace to his enemies. They regarded 
the offer as a sign of weakness, rejected it, and en- 
tered upon a fresh campaign of even more active 
hostility. 

Frederick did not hesitate. He rallied all his 
strength, repaired the losses incurred in previous 
battles, and confronted the powerful enemy v/ith a 
splendidly equipped army. Unfortunate Saxony, 
which was completely in his hands, had to contribute 

[5'] 



^FREDERICK THE GRExlT§:^ 

a large sum of money^ as well as clothing and recruits. 
Unexpected help also came from another quarter. 
The battle of Rossbach had aroused great enthu- 
siasm in Europe, particularly in England, where 
there was strong sympathy with Prussia. Parlia- 
ment unanimously voted to assist its brave ally. 
It sent him twelve thousand men, placed the Han- 
overian army, w^hich was in excellent condition, at 
his disposal, and united it with the forces from 
Hesse, Brunswick, and Gotha, making an army 
thirty thousand strong. This fresh body of troops, 
after such severe losses as he had met^ was a welcome 
gift to the King. Parliament also promised to send 
four million thalers,^ with the understanding that an 
able leader should be selected for the new corps. 
It could not have sent more acceptable help, for the 
King needed money as well as men at this time, 
when the war was about to be resumed with renewed 
vigor on all sides. Necessity forced him to make 
from ten to twelve millions of debased coin out of 
his four million thalers, as he had no other way of 
meeting his war expenses. He appointed Duke 
Ferdinand of Brunswick, who was universally re- 
garded as a superior soldier, in command of the 
thirty thousand. Like the King, he, too, under- 
stood how to oppose a large army with a smaller 



1 About ^3,350,000. 



^THE SIEGE OF OLMUTZ^ 

one. Indeed, he was an expert in that direction. 
He drove the French, who had overrun West Ger- 
many, across the Rhine, inflicted heavy losses upon 
them in their retreat, and captured eleven thousand 
prisoners. Not satisfied with this achievement, he 
kept control of the river, and fought a battle with 
the French, June 23, at Crefeld, in which they were 
routed. Seven thousand more prisoners fell into 
his hands and hundreds of bodies covered the battle- 
field. Notwithstanding these disasters, the French 
a little later made another attempt to invade Ger- 
many, which was thwarted in such a masterly manner 
that at the close of the year they were content to 
stay on their own side of the German river. The 
Duke then made his headquarters in Munster and 
from there held the enemy in check. 

While Duke Ferdinand was thus disposing of the 
French in the west, the King decided to attack the 
strong fortress at Schweidnitz, the only one remain- 
ing in the hands of the Austrians. On the march 
thither, while riding through a narrow defile, he 
found the artillery badly tangled up. While rush- 
ing about to hasten movements, he ran against a 
wheel and split one of his boots so badly that he 
could hardly keep it on. Impatient at the accident, 
he ordered an aide to find a shoemaker who could 
stitch up the boot. After considerable search a 
dragoon was found, who came, bringing his tools 

[53] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

with him. The King, dismounting, and seating 
himself upon a hillock, said : " Can you mend my 
boot ? " 

" I will see. Your Majesty. I have mended a 
good many." 

" Well, hurry up, so that I can go on.'' 

The dragoon began work, at the same time 
growHng to himself: " Hm ! These boots have 
done service enough to warrant a new pair." . 

" What is that you are saying ? " 

" Nothing." 

" But I want to know." 

"Well, I think your boots have honestly done 
all the service they can. It is no wonder they rip. 
They are worn out." 

" So ? How long think you boots must last? " ^ 

^"^ Must last — that is a different thing; but I 
can easily tell you how long they can last — three 
years." 

" Old fool, they are not as old as that yet. But 
tell me how a shoemaker can be a good dragoon." 

" You might have seen how, at Hohenfriedsberg." 

" Were you there ? " 

" To be sure I was, and I have soled Austrians 
so that many of them will remember me for a long 



1 ** His wardrobe consisted of one fine gala dress, which lasted all his life ; of 
two or three old coats fit for Monmouth Street, of yellow waistcoats soiled with 
snuff, and of huge boots embrowned by time." — Macaulaf i Essay i, 

[54] 



^THE SIEGE OF OLMUTZ^ 

time. When I make shoes, I am a shoemaker ; 
and when I ride a horse, I am a dragoon — and 
Heaven help those who get into my hands T' 

" Gently, gently, Mr. Shoemaker, I am in your 
hands. Be merciful with me." When the dragoon 
had finished, the King swiftly rode forward, placed 
himself at the head of his troops, and the march was 
resumed. 

Frederick's fortunate victory so discouraged the 
Austrian troops that the Schweidnitz garrison, 
although amply provisioned, made but a feeble 
resistance, and surrendered in a few days at discre- 
tion. All Silesia was once more in possession of 
the King. To make Maria Theresa appreciate his 
strength he extended the area of his operations into 
Moravia and laid siege to the city of Olmiitz, a 
suburb, as it were, of Vienna. It was an under- 
taking, however, as fruitless as it was unfortunate. 
The siege was long protracted, for the besiegers 
were not only hampered by lack of sufficient artillery, 
but of ammunition, which had to be hauled over 
morasses and through deep defiles. In conse- 
quence, the King had plenty of leisure for excur- 
sions into the neighboring country. Upon one 
of these occasions he rode about the country of 
Glatz in company with General Seydlitz. Passing 
through a defile, the King noticed, some distance 
away, a collection of people, whom at first glance he 

[55] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

took to be a detachment of Austrians. Seydlitz, 
who had unusually sharp eyes, was of opinion that 
Fouquet had fixed his limits there and stationed 
these people so that the enemy's troops could not 
cross them without his knowledge. The King and 
Seydlitz rode up and found that the people were 
peasants of the country, whom Fouquet had placed 
there to watch the line, 

" Are you Prussians ? " asked Frederick. 

^^ No,'' they replied, ^' we are Fickets." (Fouquet 
was called " Ficket " by the common people.) 

" You can see now," said the King to Seydlitz, 
laughing, "who is master here, and that I don't 
count for much." 

Notwithstanding this, the King continued riding 
about the country, and one day made a discovery 
which disturbed him not a little. He heard that 
the Countess Griin, wife of a staff officer of the 
garrison, had made a vow to the Virgin, at the 
Jesuit church, that she would present her a beauti- 
ful robe when the siege of Olmutz was raised. 
He immediately ordered a robe made of the richest 
material for the Madonna, and sent it to the Jesuits 
with the message that as he had heard of the Coun- 
tess's useless vow, and as he was as mindful of the 
amenities of life as she, he did not wish our dear 
Lady should be the loser. As events might take 
another turn, he was simply carrying out what the 
[56] 



^THE SIEGE OF OLMUTZ^ 

Countess might not be able to perform. The 
Jesuits, delighted with his gift, came in procession 
to thank him, and exhibited the robe to strangers as 
a proof of the King's pious sentiments. 

The King at this time evidently intended to 
press the siege with vigor and capture Olmiitz. 
The Austrians by themselves would not have 
troubled him, but he soon heard the unwelcome 
news that the Russians had captured Ciistrin and 
committed frightful excesses. He was, therefore, 
forced to consider the raising of the siege. His 
final decision was hastened by the information that 
a detachment of the enemy had captured a convoy 
of ammunition and supplies at Domstadt, which 
had been sent him from Silesia. With extreme 
reluctance he summoned all his generals and regi- 
ment and battalion commanders to headquarters. 
When they were all there, he advanced into their 
midst and said : 

" Gentlemen, the enemy has found an opportunity 
to destroy a convoy coming to us from Silesia. 
Owing to this fatal blow, I must raise the siege of 
Olmiitz, but, gentlemen, you must not conclude that 
all is lost on that account. No, you may be sure 
that everything will be made good, and in such a 
way that the enemy will have something to think 
about. You must persuade your commands not to 
grumble about it. I hope you will not be disap- 

[57] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

pointed yourselves, and should I, — though I do not 
expect it, — find that anyone else is, I shall punish 
such an one severely. I shall move immediately, and 
wherever I find the enemy I shall attack, however 
he may be posted and whether he has one or several 
batteries ; but," tapping his brow with his stick, " I 
shall never do anything unreasonable or rash. I am 
confident that every one of my officers and soldiers 
will do their duty when the time comes, as they 
have always done in the past." 

The King's words had a marked eflTect upon his 
generals. Frederick dismissed them with a cordial 
handshake and that gracious and friendly manner 
which captivated everyone. He parted from them 
with their assurance that he could rely upon their 
help under any circumstances. The siege was raised 
and the retreat was a masterly exhibition of general- 
ship. It had to be made through Bohemia, as Field- 
Marshal Daun occupied the road through Silesia. 
Daun was taken by surprise. The hussars per- 
formed excellent service by covering the retreat 
through defiles and over mountains. The King 
rode at the head of the cavalry day and night, so as 
to be on the alert against surprise by the enemy. 
Swamps and hollows were not looked upon as 
obstacles. Artillery and cavalry were forced to find 
some way over them. Once, in the darkness of the 
night, the King, riding in front of the vanguard, 
[58] 



^THE SIEGE OF OLMUTZ^ 

came to a steep descent, some four or five hundred 
feet to the bottom. The skirmishers, with a Bohe- 
mian peasant who served as guide, were some dis- 
tance in advance. For this reason the King, who 
was anxious to lose no time and to take advantage 
of the darkness, called a halt and notified the whole 
army of the situation. The cavalry had to dismount 
so as to reach the valley. One under officer who 
was in the lead hesitated on the edge of the descent, 
fearing that his horse would slip, and groped about 
himself for a footing while all the others were ready 
to go down. The King grew impatient over the 
waste of time. 

" You must have even poorer eyes than I," he 
said with some anger, "for you stumble around like 
a blind man. Come here and hold fast to my coat- 
tails and I will get you down, and the army will not 
be delayed any longer." The officer did as he was 
bid and safely reached the bottom, like the others, 
with no greater harm than a few bruises. 



[59] 



Chapti 




ter VII 

Seydlitz Saves the Day at Zorndorf 

YOTWITHSTANDING obstacles of the 
kind related in the last chapter, which 
were frequent in that region, the progress 
of the army was not checked and Silesia 
was reached. The King left the larger part of the 
army at Landeshut with Field-Marshal Keith/ for 
the protection of Silesia, and pushed on by exhaust- 
ing marches under the scorching sun to the relief of 
Count Dohna, who was in great danger from the 
attacks of the Russians. The latter, leaving devas- 
tation in their wake, had invaded Prussia as far as 
Clistrin, as already mentioned. This place they had 
captured after great destruction, and they also forced 
it to pay a heavy contribution in money. Trampled 
fields and burning villages marked the route of the 
northern barbarians. The unfortunate inhabitants 



1 George Keith was an English soldier, who fought for the house of Stuart in 
1 71 5, with his younger brother James. When that cause was lost, they went to 
the Continent and served under various flags, Anally taking service with Frederick. 
Macaulay says: ** Some of those who knew the palace best pronounced that the 
Lord Marischal (Keith) was the only human being whom Frederick ever really 
loved.** 

[60] 



^ SEYDLITZ SAVES THE DAY ^ 

of cities and villages, driven from house and home, 
wandered in bands, seeking shelter and help. Deeply 
touched by the indescribable wretchedness of his 
countrymen, Frederick marched all the more rapidly 
until he came up with the Russians at Zorndorf. 
A little stream alone separated the two armies. 

As so much depended upon securing an accurate 
idea of the whole situation, the exact position as 
well as numbers of the enemy, the King, attended 
by an aide, a servant who carried his spyglass, and 
a groom, rode to the bank of the stream, dismounted 
and bade his servant also alight. Resting his glass 
upon the latter's shoulder, he began making obser- 
vations. The moment the Russians saw him, they 
opened a continuous fire from the nearest battery, 
the shot striking so near the King as to cover his 
coat with dirt. He calmly continued his observa- 
tions without moving his glass or a change in the 
expression of his face. At last his aide thought it 
^ was his duty to remind him of the danger to which 
^he was exposed. He stepped up, gently pulled the 
skirts of the King's coat, and said: "Your Majesty 
is in too great danger here. See how the shots are 
striking all around you. Your coat and hat are 
covered with dirt." 

It was some little time before the King replied. 
At last he turned to the aide, saying with the utmost 
coolness: "If you are afraid, you can ride back"; 

[6i] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

and then resumed his observations at once. After 
he had seen all he wished, he said to his servant : 
" Now you can pack up." With these words he 
mounted his horse and leisurely rode away under a 
very shower of shot, talking in the meanwhile with his 
aide on various matters, utterly indifferent to danger. 

The ruin caused by the Russians so infuriated 
the King that he decided upon a battle to the death, 
and issued orders that none of the barbarous enemy 
should be spared. 

It was in the early morning of August 25, 1758, 
that the Prussian army, thirty-two thousand strong, 
confronted, in battle array, an enemy greatly exceed- 
ing it in strength, for the Russians numbered fifty- 
two thousand men. After all preparations for the 
battle had been made, and as the Prussians were 
marching out of camp, the King conversed with 
officers and the rank-and-file upon various matters 
as they passed by, with as much composure as if it 
were a parade. He was somewhat surprised at an 
old corporal in the grenadier battalion of the Berlin 
garrison, named Beek, whose very bald head was 
covered with the grenadier*s cap while his wig was 
hanging from his knapsack. The King rode up to 
him and noticed that the old man was still very 
active. 

^^ My friend," said he, " it is high time somebody 
looked after you. Have you had an education?" 
[6z] 



^ SEYDLITZ SAVES THE DAY ^ 

"No, Your Majesty, I have learned nothing; I 
can neither read nor write. I had to be a soldier 
when I v/as very young, and I am of no use except 
to be shot at/' 

" How long have you been in the service ? '' 

" Forty-four years already, and yet I am perfectly 
sound. If the war lasts long enough, however, my 
time to die will come. I don't care for that, for I 
have always lived the soldier's life. There is only 
one thing that troubles me. If it were not for that. 
Your Majesty, I should n't care if I were shot to- 
day. I would die right willingly." 

The King listened attentively and then asked : 

" Well, what troubles you ? " 

"Your Majesty, I have an only boy who is mak- 
ing some progress. His mother has taught him to 
read quite well, and I' would be glad to have him 
learn whatever is proper for him, and go to some 
good school, so that he will know more than I do. 
That will help him when he goes out into the world, 
I cannot afford to give him anything out of my 
allowance." 

" Where is your son to be found ? " 

The father gave him his son's residence, and told 
his name, and then the King rode away. A few 
minutes after this the battle began. 

The Russians were formed in a huge quadrilateral. 
The Prussian artillerv played havoc with this dense, 

[63] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

unwieldy mass, for Captain Moller that day had 
one hundred and seventeen cannon and howitzers. 
Seydlitz was chief in command of all the cavalry. 
The Russian general, Fermor, opened the battle 
prematurely by a sudden attack with his cavalry, 
which dashed upon the Prussians with loud cheers. 
Seydlitz did not neglect his opportunity. With his 
characteristic energy he repulsed the cavalry and 
hurled back the enemy's infantry. The ensuing 
confusion, greatly increased by the dust, smoke, and 
furious battle cries, was so great that the Russian 
rear guard fired upon their own men. Dreadful 
slaughter followed, but the Russians stood as if 
rooted to the earth and fought like lions. At last, 
by the aid of invincible courage and judicious leader- 
ship, the Prussian army weakened the enemy, but 
as yet without decisive result. An eyewitness 
describes the further progress of the battle as 
follows : 

"Fiercely blazed the noonday sun upon the 
exhausted troops, who had been on their feet since 
four o'clock in the morning. The cavalry was par- 
ticularly fatigued, for it had been engaged at the 
most dangerous points. Both men and animals 
needed refreshment, which could only be procured 
for a short time back of the village of Zorndorf, 
where Seydlitz's squadrons had been stationed. 
The King was anxious to make the battle decisive, 
[64] 



^SEYDLITZ SAVES THE DAY ^ 

and therefore, in the afternoon, ordered it to be re- 
newed. The Russian army stood ready in battle 
order. Fifteen thousand infantry, twelve ranks 
deep, occupied a strong position, and one hundred 
cannon covered their flanks and poured a deadly fire 
into the approaching Prussian regiments. Their 
onset was checked, and they fell back. The fate 
of Prussia and its heroic King hung in the balance. 
Seydlitz, who had formed his cavalry in three 
divisions, recognized the danger and rushed for- 
ward. He had his sixty-one squadrons in such shape 
that they could make repeated assaults upon the 
obstinate enemy. The first division was composed^ 
of eighteen squadrons of cuirassiers, assisted by a 
fine regiment of carbineers and a corps of gens 
d* armes. At a hundred yards away were three 
regiments of dragoons in the second division, which 
supported the fi.rst and filled up gaps. The third 
division, two hundred and fifty yards distant, con- 
sisted of three regiments of hussars, whose duty it 
was to capture artillery, take charge of prisoners, 
and destroy broken battalions. 

"In order to save the badly weakened men and 
horses as much as possible, Seydlitz ordered that 
at first all movements should be made in slow and 
regular time ; but at the final ' March, march,' 
they should not spare the spur, but hurl them- 
selves upon the enemy with all possible force and 
5 [65] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

fury. The powerful body began its slow move- 
ment, greatly hindered by the retreating battalions 
of Dohna's infantry. With clear, far-reaching voice 
Seydlitz ordered, ' Make ready for attack ! ' for the 
Russian shots were already falling among them. 
Quickly followed the first ^ March, march,' order, 
blown by two hundred trumpeters, but the squad- 
rons moved forward at an easy gallop. Nearer and 
nearer, enveloped in dense clouds of dust, they 
rushed upon the Russian colossus. Then came 
the thunder-shock. Grapeshot made frightful 
havoc in the Prussian ranks. At last the trum- 
peters sounded the final * March, march,' and with 
all their force the Prussian centaurs hurled them- 
selves upon the enemy's bayonets. With incessant 
and irresistible fury the whole sixty-one squadrons 
repeatedly charged. The cannon were captured, 
men were mowed down. Suddenly firing ceased. 
Death came by cut and thrust. Darkness and the 
complete exhaustion of men and horses ended the 
slaughter." 

Frederick was jubilant over his brilliant victory. 
One hundred and three cannon, twenty-seven stand- 
ards, and the money chests were the spoils of the 
day, but ten thousand Prussians were left upon the 
field of honor. On this day, Seydlitz and his 
cavalry had rescued the Fatherland and saved 
Prussia's military glory. He had performed mira- 
[66] 



^ SEYDLITZ SAVES THE DAY ^ 

cles of bravery, and when the infantry wavered it 
was his cavalry which put the enemy to flight. 
The King himself acknowledged this, for when 
he was congratulated upon the great victory he 
turned to Seydlitz, and said : " But for this man 
things would have looked bad for us by this time." 



[67] 



Chapter VIII 

Frederick' s Defeat at Hochkirch 



f/' — j r~^HE King was in more cheerful humor 
after the brilliant victory at Zorndorf. 
The carrying out of his battle plans had 
demanded all his physical and mental 
ability, but he was not so absorbed in his victory 
that he forgot his old soldier. Shortly after the 
battle, he happened to meet Corporal Beek, who 
had escaped unhurt. 

" Well," said the King to him with great cor- 
diality, " your son is going to be looked after." 

Beek soon learned that this was true. A mes- 
senger who carried the news of the victory to Berlin, 
when he returned, brought him a letter from his 
wife, telling him that her son had been taken from 
her by royal command and placed in the Gymna- 
sium, where he was to be clothed, maintained, and 
educated at public expense. The old corporal wept 
tears of joy on receiving the news, and blessed the 
King who had such a fatherly interest in his soldiers. 

A few days before the battle of Zorndorf a letter 
from the Austrian Field-Marshal Daun fell into the 
[68] 



^DEFEAT AT HOCHKIRCH^ 

hands of the King.^ It warned the Russian com- 
mander of the proposed attack, and added that he 
ought not to go into battle with such a wily enemy, 
but should cautiously manoeuvre and hold him in 
check until the Austrians could get possession of 
Saxony. The letter disclosed the enemy's plans. 
After the victory, the King wrote to Daun : 

" You did well to warn the Russian general 
against a v/ily enemy whom you know better than 
he. He made a stand and has been defeated." 

A bolt from the clear sky could not have alarmed 
the Austrian field-marshal more than these v/ords 
from the much-feared King, and his alarm increased 
when the rumor spread that he was approaching. 
The report was true. The energetic hero hurried 
forward as rapidly as the condition of his army 
would permit, so as to reach Saxony and bring re- 
lief to his brother. Prince Henry, who was hard- 
pressed by the Austrians. His plan was to drive 
the Austrians from Neisse, which had been besieged 
by them for a long time ; but Daun, as soon as he 
was aware of Frederick's approach, withdrew in 
alarm and entrenched himself in a strong position. 



1 This letter was written by Daun to the Russian General Fermor. The re- 
ply sent to Daun was written by the King, but was signed ** Fermor," and read : 
** Your Excellency was in the right to warn me against a cunning enemy whom 
you know better than I. Here have I tried fighting him and got beaten. 

*< Your unfortunate 

** Fermor.** 

[69] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

The King had no intention of attacking the enemy 
in his stronghold. He paid not the slightest atten- 
tion to him, but as if in utter contempt took a 
position right before his eyes at Hochkirch, where, 
on October 14, 1758, the battle occurred. The 
King evidently carried his audacious plan too far. 
He even allowed his enemy to go on entrenching 
himself without once disturbing him. The day 
before the sudden attack made by the Austrians he 
observed that they were throwing up defences upon 
a mountain side, opposite one of the wings of his 
army, as boldly and openly as if they expected 
no interference. The Prussian general in command 
of that wing sent an aide to the King's headquarters 
with information of the enemy's operations. The 
King said to the aide: 

^^ V/hat good news bring you ? " 

The aide expressed his misgivings, and asked if 
his Majesty would order them to open fire on the 
enemy. The commander of the nearest battery 
had assured them the enemy was in range. 

" No, no," replied the King, ^^ pay no attention 
to them. I shall catch them in the morning," 

He took his leave, but just as he was going out 
the King called him back. 

" Listen ! Have you any idea what a cannon- 
shot might cost me ? " 

The question surprised the aide, but he knew the 
[70] 



^DEFEAT AT HOCHKIRCH^ 

King would prefer the best answer he could make 
than no reply at all, so he said : 

" One shot might cost Your Majesty a Friedrick 
(Torr 

" Well," continued the King, " and how many 
Friedrich d'ors do you suppose those fellows over 
there are worth ? '* At last the King said : " Well, 
you may fire a few shots, nothing more/' 

This was done, but the firing was useless. 

Notwithstanding the insecure position of his army, 
the King had so little fear of attack that his generals 
felt it their duty to warn him and to try to dissuade 
him from his purpose. The camp was so poorly 
protected that Field-Marshal Keith one day said : 
" If the Austrians do not attack us here, they 
deserve to be hanged." 

"Oh," replied the King, "let us hope they are 
more afraid of us than of the gallows." 

The Austrian general's plans were so well made 
that the proud King had to expiate his contempt in 
defeat. On the 14th of October, before daybreak, 
Daun surrounded Hochkirch, in the vicinity of 
which the Prussians were encamped. They were 
resting in fancied security when they were suddenly 
roused by the dreadful thunder of cannon. The 
whole army was thrown into confusion. Soldiers 
ran over each other and could hardly find their 
weapons. In a wild scramble they tried to form in 

[71] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

line, but no one could find his comrade, for the en- 
emy's grapeshot was strewing the ground with bodies. 
The confusion knew no bounds; everyone was rush- 
ing about shouting and panic-stricken, the officers 
were powerless to check the tumult and disorder. 

Zieten and Seydlitz, expecting the enemy's attack, 
had not allowed their men to leave their horses 
through the night. They endeavored to do some- 
thing, but in the darkness they could not distinguish 
friend from foe, or escape the murderous fire which 
mowed down the Prussian ranks as if they had been 
rows of corn. Never did the sun rise upon a more 
dreadful spectacle. They turned their eyes away 
from it, and many of the grizzled warriors could not 
restrain their tears as they looked upon the awful 
sight. The signal for retreat was sounded, and not- 
withstanding the terror and confusion of the scene 
it was executed in such a masterly manner that Daun 
was astonished. He did not attempt to pursue, but 
fell back to his camp as if nothing had occurred. 
The Prussian loss was excessive. More than nine 
thousand bodies were lying in that narrow camp 
area. Beside this, they lost one hundred cannon 
and nearly all their tents and baggage. 

The King had to summon up all his courage. 

At eleven o'clock that morning he had sadly gazed 

from an eminence at the fragments of his shattered 

army. He forced himself to assume a cheerful air, 

[72] 



^DEFEAT AT HOCHKIRCH^ 

for he knew that all eyes were fixed upon him and 
that his soldiers were looking to him for consolation 
and fresh assurance. Therefore he appeared un- 
moved, and when General Von der Goltz joined him 
he said, in a facetious way: " My dear Goltz, they 
did not wake us up very politely." 

" Excuse me, Your Majesty," replied the General, 
" we do not usually talk by day about the things 
which trouble us in sleep." 

"You are right," said the King, " but some bright 
day I will return the incivility of these gentlemen 
who woke us up so rudely." Though only jok- 
ing, the King had spoken prophetic words. 

We know from the statements of those most 
intimate with him how deeply Frederick felt this 
matter. As, after the defeat at Kollin, his troubles 
were increased by the news of the death of his be- 
loved mother, so now, in the very hour of his defeat 
at Hochkirch, he heard the sad news of the death 
of his sister Wilhelmina,^ the sharer of his youthful 
troubles. But painful as this news was, when he 
reflected upon the dangers impending over the 
Fatherland he controlled his grief and devoted him- 
self to his kingly duties. 



1 Princess Friederike Sophie Wilhelmina was the favorite sister of Frederick 
the Great. She was born in 1709, married the Margrave of Baireuth in 1 731, 
and died in 1758. She wrote her memoirs, but they were not published until 
1 8 10. Like her brother, she was the frequent victim of her father's cruelty. 

[73] 



^ i. 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

Some days after this, October 17, the King sum- 
moned all his generals and staff officers and thus 
addressed them : "You are aware, gentlemen, that 
the army has suffered from a surprise. The dark- 
ness of the night was accountable for it. You must 
now consider our situation. We are in upper 
Lusatia. Our property, our wives, our children are 
far behind us. If we weaken in the least, all will 
be lost. An immediate battle is inevitable. Rather 
than submit, I will be buried with the rest of my 
army. I suppose that every one of you thinks as 
I do. He v/ho does not, can be spared ; he can go 
home immediately. Is there such an one among 
you r 

All present hastened to assure the King that they 
would do their duty as they had always done it. 
Frederick listened to their declaration with much 
satisfaction, and replied : " I am delighted, gentle- 
man, to find the same devotion and self-sacrifice 
you have always shown. I thank you for it." 

His heavy losses at Hochkirch greatly troubled 
Frederick, but he consoled himself with the thought 
of his next great battle. At this time he wrote to a 
friend : 

"The affair of October 14 ought to have decided 
the campaign, but it was nothing more than a scratch. 
A great battle must decide our fate. In all likeli- 
hood we shall have one very soon and then, with 
[74] 



S^DEFEAT AT HOCHKIRCH^ 

the result in our favor, we can rejoice. It has 
required many troops and much skill to get us thus 
far along." 

While Frederick was occupied with his great 
plans to avenge his defeat, Daun remained quietly 
in his camp on the lookout, rejoicing over the dis- 
aster and confident that the Prussians had had 
enough of it. On the other hand, the King, who 
was always prompt in decision, sent speedy couriers 
to his brother Henry, in Saxony, with instructions 
for him to march into upper Lusatia with his seven 
thousand men and join his command. Meanwhile 
he kept a sharp watch upon the enemy. One 
Autumn morning, about daybreak, as he was riding 
out in search of information, attended by some under- 
officers, the fog grew so dense that they could only 
see a few paces ahead of them. They rode along a 
carriage road, the King having the idea that by turn- 
ing to the right they could avoid the enemy's out- 
posts. Adjutant von Oppen, however, noticed that 
they had already gone too far. " Upon my soul. 
Your Majesty," said he, "we are already too far to the 
left and are certainly behind the enemy's outposts." 
Scarcely had he said the last word, when an Aus- 
trian hussar appeared at their right to see who was 
talking. The King, with his usual presence of mind, 
advanced to the Austrian and coolly asked : 

" Hussar, where does this road lead ? '' 

[75] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

The hussar saw at once they were Prussians, but 
he was so struck by the tone of voice and looks of 
the King, as well as by his coolness, that he stood 
as speechless and motionless as a statue. With the 
utmost composure, the King remarked : ^' Gentle- 
men, proceed. The hussar does not know." They 
rode quickly away under cover of the fog, which put 
an end to further observations. Frederick often 
related this incident afterward and laughed heartily 
over it. 

Prince Henry soon arrived with his reenforce- 
ments. Thus strengthened, the King by skilful 
manoeuvres succeeded in getting round the Aus- 
trians without their knowledge, and reaching Silesia, 
where the enemy was again trying to secure a foot- 
hold. Upon Frederick's appearance, however, the 
enemy retired. He believed he could drive the 
Austrians out of Neisse without serious effort and 
make himself master of Silesia. Daun was not a little 
surprised at the news. He was greatly astonished 
at the shrewdness of his adversary, and was much 
chagrined that the disaster at Hochkirch had not 
been of the least advantage to him. He longed to 
perform some great deed, and, as nothing better 
suggested itself to him, he decided to march into 
Saxony and wrest Dresden from the hands of the 
Prussians. But he reckoned without his host. 
Perhaps he believed that he could accomplish his 

[76] 



^DEFEAT AT HOCHKIRCH^I^ 

purpose by merely demanding the surrender of the 
city. But he made a sad mistake. Schmettau, 
the commander, was not alarmed, and replied to the 
demand for surrender: " I will defend myself from 
street to street and finish up in the ruins of the 
Elector's palace." When Daun received this 
emphatic reply and was convinced that Schmettau 
meant what he said, he quickly withdrew, so that 
he should not be surprised by the King, and went 
into Winter quarters in Bohemia. 



[77] 



Chapti 



ter IX 

The 7110 St dreadful Day in Frederick' s Life 



m 



— ^HE year 1758 came to its close, and after 
a survey of his military operations it must 
be said that Frederick, notwithstanding 
many disasters, had made great headway 



against the legions of his enemies. He had again 
beaten them back and gloriously ended the year's 
campaign. His generals had also shown great skill 
in military operations. Belling, in particular, had 
bravely held his ground, and driven the Swedes 
back to Stralsund and the island of Riigen. Duke 
Ferdinand of Brunswick had been equally successful 
in his campaign against the French. 

At the commencement of this year, war broke 
out first in Westphalia. The French attempted to 
overwhelm Duke Ferdinand by superior num.bers. 
They despatched two strong armies against him, one 
of which went to Frankfurt and the other to Diis- 
seldorf. The Duke decided to attack the army at 
Frankfurt, and fought a stubborn battle at Bergen. 
The French were in such strong position that the 
Prussians could not dislodge them, but were forced 
[78] 



^ THE MOST DREADFUL DAY ^ 

to fall back. The enemy pursued on foot and, 
harassed by superior numbers, they were forced to 
retreat to Bremen on the Weser. The enemies of 
Prussia held a jubilee. They were now certain that 
Westphalia, Hesse, Brunswick, and Hanover would 
be held by the French for all time, and that a suffi- 
cient force of commissioners would be sent over 
from Paris to establish French dominion over these 
fine German provinces. The Duke, however, did 
not entertain any such idea, for suddenly he again 
took the offensive and attacked the other army 
while on its way from Diisseldorf. 

Ferdinand came upon the French camp at Minden 
and gave battle on the plains near that city, August 
I, 1759. The attack began at the village of Tod- 
tenhausen. Count Wilhelm of Biickeburg, com- 
manding the Prussian artillery, had taken a strong 
position. His fire played such havoc in the close 
ranks of the French that they were forced to fall 
back. The artillery was the first to retreat and the 
cavalry followed its example, which left great gaps 
in the ranks of the infantry and created much dis- 
order. The Duke lost no time in following up his 
advantage. He ordered Sackville, the English 
general, to attack the enemy with his cavalry. 
There had been bad feeling between the tv/o leaders 
for some time, so that concerted action between 
them was well-nigh impossible. As it was, the 

[79] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

English general held back long enough to lose 
the advantage of the critical moment, so that the 
enemy, who could not have escaped annihilation 
had the attack been promptly made, had time 
enough to get into order and effect a retreat.^ As 
it was, however, seven thousand prisoners were 
captured, and twenty-five cannon and several stand- 
ards fell into the hands of the Prussians. The 
French were pursued for some distance, and did not 
find safety until they reached their camp at Frankfurt. 
The news of this brilliant victory surprised the 
King just as he was in the midst of preparations for 
a terrible struggle with the enemy. He was in a 
strong position at Landeshut, and to the great aston- 
ishment of his enemies he remained there quietly 
until the middle of the year, apparently waiting to 
see what the Russians and Austrians were going to 
do. They had improved the intervening time in 
strengthening their depleted ranks, and now pro- 
posed to move against the Prussians in a body and 
with largely increased numbers. Frederick, all this 
time, was not unmindful of their plans, and consider- 
ably strengthened his own army ; but even then he 



1 Lord George Sackville, third son of the first Duke of Dorset, was an English 
soldier. He was made Major General in 1755 ^"^ Lieutenant General in 1757. 
He served second in command to Marlborough at Hanover in 1758, and upon the 
latter' s death succeeded to the chief command. For his conduct at Minden he 
was dismissed from the army. 

[80] 



^ THE MOST DREADFUL DAY ^ 

had only half as many troops as the enemy. The 
larger part of his choicest soldiers had been left on 
the field of honor, and it was with much anxiety 
that he regarded further campaigning. When news 
came of the Russian advance he was ignorant from 
what direction the attack would be made, as they 
were approaching the Brandenburg frontier in 
several divisions. To strengthen themselves and 
get in readiness for the great task awaiting them, it 
was decided that the brave Austrian General Laudon 
should unite his force of twenty thousand men with 
their force. Frederick, who was apprised of their 
plans, attemxpted to thwart them, and sent Generals 
Dohna and Wedell against them, but they were 
driven back, and the Austro-Russian combination 
was effected. The King had not believed this pos- 
sible, and he was greatly surprised, therefore, by the 
news that the combined army, seventy thousand 
strong, was advancing to the Oder with designs 
upon the capital,^ the road to which was open. The 
King now made his plans to frustrate the movement, 
and ordered the rapid advance of his army. He 
felt a fatal presentiment, and before he set out left 
his will with Prince Henry, and committed the 
administration of the kingdom to him in case any- 
thing happened to himself. He made all his arrange- 



1 Frankfurt. 

6 [8i] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

ments with the same care that one displays when 
about to engage in a hazardous task. He provided 
for every emergency, and cautioned his brother 
against making a dishonorable peace after his death. 
With such gloomy thoughts as these the King 
advanced to meet his enemy. 

On the eleventh of August, 1759, Frederick en- 
countered his enemies fifty miles from Berlin. They 
were strongly entrenched at Kunersdorf^ and sur- 
rounded by batteries of cannon, whose yawning 
mouths threatened death and destruction to anyone 
who came near them. Notwithstanding the great 
superiority of the enemies' numbers and the exceed- 
ing strength of their batteries, the King decided to 
attack the combined armies August 12. At that 
very time a courier from Duke Ferdinand of Bruns- 
wick arrived with the good news of the victory at 
Minden. The King now was in such confident 
mood that he ordered the courier to put off his 
return a few days, so that he could send back an 
equally joyful message of victory. 

Toward noon the signal was given for attack, 
and the battle began with good fortune on the 
Prussian side. Encouraged by their King, the brave 
troops displayed again that heroic courage which 



1 The battlefield of Kunersdorf is near Frankfurt, on the other side of the 
Oder, fifty miles southeast of Berlin. 

[82] 



^ THE MOST DREADFUL DAY ^ 

had aroused universal admiration. They paid no 
attention to the awful fire which was devastating 
their ranks ; with utter contempt for death they 
charged battery after battery, until the Russian left 
wing could no longer withstand their assaults. It 
was driven from its position and seventy cannon fell 
into their hands. It was a sign that the Goddess 
of Victory this time favored the Prussians. 

By this time the day was nearly spent, and the 
soldiers, exhausted by their long struggle, aroused 
the sympathy of their leaders. Some of the oldest 
and most experienced of them urgently appealed to 
the King to stop the battle and spare the soldiers, 
as the enemy was retreating. Frederick, however, 
remained unmoved. He was not contented with 
the advantage he had gained. No, he would im- 
mediately annihilate the enemy. He ordered Seyd- 
litz to cut his way through them with the cavalry. 
It was in vain, however, that Seydlitz explained he 
was holding Laudon in check on the right wing of 
the Russians. It was in vain that he assured the 
King the meadows before them were so swampy 
that horses and riders would be stuck in the bogs 
if they ventured there. All that he said was of 
no avail. 

" Do your duty and execute the orders of your 
King," repHed Frederick, firmly. 

Seydlitz saluted and obeyed, but the soundness 

[83] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

of his suggestions was realized only too soon. The 
ground shook under the squadrons as they got into 
motion, and soon they were floundering in the 
swamp. As if they were anticipating just such an 
inconsiderate movement, the Russians and Austrians 
furiously assaulted their immovable enemy, and such 
bloodshed ensued that the green meadows were 
crimsoned. Seydlitz himself was carried off the 
field wounded. The tired-out Prussians were 
panic-stricken. All fled who could, and the com- 
mands even of their highest officers were ineff'ective 
to stay the retreat. The Prussian army was not 
only defeated, it was destroyed. The battle was 
irretrievably lost, the ruin was complete. Pursued 
by the enemy, the unfortunates sought protection, 
and found it only in the darkness of the night. 

The King had been conspicuous in his efforts to 
avert this disastrous defeat. He was in the very 
thick of the battle and did his utmost to keep the 
troops in line and encourage them. His attention 
was called to the danger he was in and he was 
besought to be more careful, but he emphatically 
refused, saying : *^ No ! We must all strive for vic- 
tory together, and I must do my duty like everyone 
else." 

In the main attack two horses were shot down 
under him. Mounting a third, a bullet passed 
through his overcoat and shattered a gold case in 
[84] 



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^ THE MOST DREADFUL DAY ^ 

his waistcoat pocket. All his efforts, however, were 
useless. His exhortations had lost their custom- 
ary inspiring effect. Throwing away weapons and 
accoutrements, everyone sought safety in flight. 
He was not only compelled to witness the aban- 
doning of the cannon captured from the Russians, 
but to mourn the loss of one hundred and sixty-five 
pieces of Prussian artillery. The situation became 
more and more desperate, and at last, realizing all 
was lost, he exclaimed in utter despair : " Is there 
^ not a cursed bullet for me to-day ? '' 

When night came on, he was almost the only 
living soul on the wide battlefield. His army was 
partly scattered about the surrounding country ; 
the rest of it had been put to flight. 

Frederick stood on the bloody field like one 
dazed, and it was only by chance he was saved from 
capture by some Russians and Austrians who ap- 
proached the spot where he was standing. Captain 
Prittiwitz, his fortunate star, happened to be pass- 
ing near by, with forty hussars. Lieutenant Belten 
suddenly exclaimed : ^^ Captain Prittiwitz, yonder 
stands the King." 

The captain immediately turned his horse and 
rode forward with his men to the King, who was 
standing with folded arms upon a sandy hillock and 
alone, save for a single attendant who held his horse. 
His sword was sticking in the sand in front of him. 

[85] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

The captain had considerable trouble in persuading 
the King to mount his horse, for at that instant 
Frederick was on the very verge of despair. To 
the appeal of the captain, he replied : " Leave me, 
Prittiwitz ; I am lost/' 

" Not yet, Your Majesty," answered Prittiwitz ; 
"you are still King of Prussia and commander of 
an army of brave soldiers." 

"Well, if you think so, forward." 

The hussars surrounded Frederick and made 
their way to the Oder, with roving bands of Cos- 
sacks continually swarming about them. Prittiwitz 
kept off the insolent pack and shot their leader off 
his horse. After the Muhl was safely crossed there 
was no further trouble, and the King was left unin- 
jured at a ferryman's hut. He thanked the captain, 
ordered that gifts be distributed among the hussars, 
and gave instructions to see that he remained undis- 
turbed until he had time to collect himself, for he 
was still overmastered by his calamity. He wrote 
to his minister, Finkenstein, in Berlin : 

" Provide for the safety of the Queen and the 
royal family at Magdeburg, and do all you can for 
them." 

A few hours later, he sent the following message 
to him : 

" It is a terrible disaster. I shall not survive it. 
The consequences of the battle will be worse than 
[86] 



5^ THE MOST DREADFUL DAY ^ 

the battle itself. I have no further resources and, 
to tell the truth, I consider everything lost. I shall 
not survive the destruction of the Fatherland. 
Adieu forever." 

That was the most dreadful day in the life of 
the great King. 

It is not surprising, however, that the King was 
in such a despondent mood, for on that very even- 
ing he could not have assembled five thousand men 
of his magnificent army. Twenty-six thousand were 
killed, wounded, or prisoners, and the others were 
scattered in flight. But the Russian army also 
suffered dreadfully. " If I should fight one more 
such battle," said its commanding general, " I should 
take the nev/s of it to St. Petersburg myself with a 
staff in my hand." It was not long, however, be- 
fore Frederick regained his composure. It was 
' characteristic of him that he was always the greatest 
when things were going badly. Messengers flew to 
Berlin and Custrin with orders that artillery should 
be despatched to him as quickly as possible. He 
collected his fugitive troops, reenforced them with 
other detachments, and within a short time an army 
of eighteen thousand men was at his disposal. The 
most important thing for him now was to rouse the 
courage of his officers. To this end he sent for 
the messenger who had brought the news of the 
victory in Westphalia, and said to him in their 

[87] 



^ FREDERICK THE GREAT ^ 

hearing : " You have seen what has been going on 
here. Hurry back, and if you find the enemy is 
not in Berlin or Magdeburg, tell the Duke not 
much has yet been lost/' 

In view of Frederick's plight and the general 
condition of his affairs, this message must have 
seemed ridiculous, for he had not a sufficient force 
in readiness to stay the victorious advance of the 
Russians or to defend the capital and the country. 
This was known abroad also, for word was sent 
from Paris to the Russian general that the King of 
Prussia must be exterminated, and Berlin and the 
whole Mark of Brandenburg devastated. The 
Austrian Field-Marshal Daun also urged the Rus- 
sians to make a rapid advance. Soltikow, their 
commander, however, did not move, and when 
further urged by Daun, almost suppliantly, to 
hurry forward, he simply wrote to him : 

" I have won two battles, and am waiting before 
I advance again for news of a second one from you. 
It is not fair that my Emperor's army should have 
to do all the work." 

Of course this jealousy among the enemy's 
leaders was of the greatest advantage to the King 
and the Fatherland. The Russians were in posi- 
tion at Frankfurt-on-the-Oder, and it was not until 
they were stirred up on all sides that they moved 
at all. When they did, they could not find subsist- 
[88] 



^ THE MOST DREADFUL DAY ^ 

ence, and at the end of October they went back 
again into Poland, which reheved the Prussians of 
one imminent danger. 

Field- Marshal Daun in the meantime had been held 
in check in Saxony in a most masterly way by Prince 
Henry. The Prince was one of the ablest generals 
of his time, and his brother, the King, fully recog- 
nized it. He said of him once, " He is the only 
general who has not made a mistake during the 
entire war." Beside his strategic talent, he had 
engaging personal qualities which commended him 
to friend and foe alike. To him was assigned the 
duty of watching over the Electorate of Saxony. It 
may well be believed that he was an unwelcome 
visitor in the enemy's country, but he was greatly 
respected by the Saxons, and years after this they 
told with much emotion how this noble Hohenzol- 
lern in 1759, one day in harvest-time, when a sudden 
storm threatened to ruin their cornfields, allowed 
the peasants of a Saxon village to use his own horses 
for getting in their corn. He specially displayed 
his brilliant qualities in preventing Field-Marshal 
Daun from effecting a union with the Russians. By 
swift and skilful marches he kept Daun moving here 
and there, then suddenly eluded him, and destroyed 
a number of storehouses with supplies sufficient 
to have maintained fifty thousand soldiers for six 
months. This caused such a scarcity of subsistence 

[89] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

and fodder that the indignant troops began to com- 
plain, and Daun had to fall back to a better position. 
The Mark of Brandenburg was safe, but other mis- 
fortunes were in store for Frederick. Dresden was 
in the hands of the enemy as one of the immediate 
results of the battle of Kunersdorf When hardest 
pressed, Frederick wrote the commander in the 
Saxon capital to save if possible the seven millions 
of treasure in the money chests and evacuate with 
honor, for he could not send him help. This occurred 
immediately after the disastrous battle. 

When Frederick was himself once more, he 
changed his mind, but alas ! it was too late. Dresden 
was already lost to the Prussians. Frederick stamped 
with rage and declared he would retake it. He at 
once ordered the army to move into Saxony, although 
the inclement season of the year had begun. Prince 
Henry begged the King to spare his troops during 
the Winter and put off any large undertakings he 
had in view, but it was all in vain. The King 
would not listen to him. He ordered General 
Finck to attack the enemy's rear with fifteen thou- 
sand men and force him to retreat. Every tactician 
foresaw the disastrous consequences. All his gen- 
erals were of opinion that the attack would end 
calamitously, and so it turned out. Finck had 
hardly reached Maxen,. November 21, 1759, before 
the tables were turned. Instead of being the attack- 
Ego] 



^ THE MOST DREADFUL DAY ^ 

ing party, he himself was attacked on all sides. 
Terrible slaughter ensued. The Prussians resisted 
the attack with their customary bravery, but finally 
had to succumb. The army was nearly wiped out, 
as eleven thousand of them were taken prisoners. 
Never before had a year been so disastrous for 
Frederick as was 1759. Never before did a year 
close more gloomily for him. 



[91] 



Chapter X 
The Battle of Liegnitz 



m 



— ^HE deplorable result of these operations 
weighed heavily upon the King and never 
before did he inaugurate a campaign in a 
more despondent mood than that of 1760. 



It affected all his movements and all his actions and 
at last it seemed as if his lucky star would never 
shine again. In Silesia, the Austrian General Lau- 
don, with a force three times greater, attacked 
General Fouque, and his eight thousand men. 
Fouque defended himself with the courage of a lion, 
and his soldiers fought none the less bravely, but he 
had the misfortune to be thrown from his horse in 
such a way that the animal fell upon him and un- 
doubtedly would have crushed him to death but for 
the opportune arrival of his faithful groom. Only 
such troopers as had swift enough horses escaped 
from the scene of slaughter. 

Frederick meanwhile was busy with his plans for 

retaking Dresden. He closely invested that city, 

but whatever moves he made were immediately 

thwarted by the Austrian general, who made a reso- 

[92] 



^ THE BATTLE OF LIEGNITZ ^ 

lute defence of the post entrusted to him. The 
failure of his plans only made the King still more 
despondent. His best friends and most experienced 
generals suffered greatly from his ill humor, for he 
was often not only severe, but grossly uQJust. He 
called the soldiers of one regiment cowarag, and cut 
off the decorations from their uniforms beside tak- 
ing away their sidearms and badges of honor. One 
blow after another struck the King. Hardly had 
he learned of the destruction of Fouque's corps 
when the unhappy news came that General Laudon 
had taken the important fortress of Glatz. Every- 
one now expected another wrathful outbreak from 
the King, but on the contrary he remarked : 

"Be it so ! But they will have to give it back 
when peace is made. We must now go to Silesia 
lest we lose everything/' 

His decision was executed almost as soon as it 
was announced. While on the way, Daun was near 
him on one side and the Austrian General Lacy on 
the other. The three armies were so close together 
that they might easily have been mistaken for one. 
The light troops had frequent skirmishes, and hardly 
a day passed without encounters. Thus they fought 
their way along to Liegnitz. Further advance of 
the King was now impossible, for Laudon appeared 
in front of him. He was completely surrounded 
by the Austrian armies. The enemy's leaders were 

[93] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

jubilant over the prospect of capturing the King 
and his entire army. 

" The net is made in which we will capture the 
whole Prussian army/' they said, contemptuously. 
" We have only to cast it." 

The King was informed of their boast and laugh- 
ingly replied : " That may be so, but I think I can 
make a hole in that net which they can't sew up 
again." 

These were prophetic words. 

The King's army now was so closely hemmed in 
by the Austrians that a mouse could not have 
slipped through, and the transportation of sub- 
sistence was impossible. Instead of commissary 
bread, zwiebach was distributed among the soldiers. 
The King often diverted himself toward evening 
by walking or riding among the squadrons of the 
Garde du Corps and talking with the men in a joking 
way, so as to keep them in good spirits and arouse 
hope for better times. Upon one such occasion 
he happened upon an under-officer who had broken 
his zwiebach and mixed it with a flask of red wine 
in the camp kettle, hanging over the fire. 

" What kind of red soup is that you have there ? " 
asked the King. 

"Your Majesty," was the reply, " that soup cost 
me seven thalers in cash." 

" Hoho ! hoho ! " said the King, " what is it? " 
[94] 



^ THE BATTLE OF LIEGNITZ ^ 

" It is red wine and zwiebach. I spent my last 
ducat -^ that I might have a little comfort once 
more." 

" Well, if it has cost that much, I would like to 
know how it tastes/' 

" Certainly, Your Majesty, but I have only a 
tin spoon," 

" That makes no difference." 

Thereupon the King took a spoonful of the soup 
and said : " This is really very good, but it is too 
expensive. But I thank you just the same, and you 
must come soon and eat with me." 

The King shortly afterward ordered the officer 
to come to his headquarters, and there he appeased 
his hunger with such food as Frederick ate. Be- 
side this, the King gave him a handsome sum in 
gold. In such ways as these he managed to win 
the love and respect of his soldiers. 

To the astonishment of all, Daun decided upon 
a battle, hoping thus to ensure the destruction of 
the Prussian army. The decisive blow was to be 
struck August 15, and to make it all the more 
decisive he arranged for an attack at daybreak and 
a repetition of the slaughter at Hochkirch. This 
time, however, Frederick was fortunate enough to 
hear of the plan and he made a counterplan at once. 



1 A ducat was the equivalent at that time of seven thalers. 

[95] 



^FREDERICK THE GREAT§^ 

The Prussian army left its camp in absolute silence 
during the night and occupied the neighboring 
heights ; and to make the Austrians believe it was 
resting quietly in its old position, peasants were 
employed to keep the campfires burning brightly. 

Noiselessly Frederick arranged his army in 
fighting order. Silently the regiments stood in 
rank and listened for the signal to attack. There 
was something weird in the spectacle. The infantry 
stood with weapons ready for attack, and bright 
sabres flashed in the stout fists of the troopers ready 
at any instant to strike. Far down in the east day 
was dawning, and the silent host in the gray dusk 
looked like a troop of spectres. 

To enjoy a moment's rest. Generals Seydlitz and 
Zieten threw themselves down by a campfire and 
slept ; but Frederick, sitting upon a drumhead, con- 
sidered the plans of the coming battle. At last he 
too was overcome by fatigue, and lying by the side 
of his generals was soon asleep. Suddenly a major 
rushed up and loudly asked, " Where is the King? " 

The latter, somewhat startled, arose at once and 
answered, " What is the matter? " 

"The enemy is not four hundred yards away," 
was his reply. 

Officers and men were at once on the alert. 
Two minutes sufficed to form the regiments in 
order. Words of command were heard on all sides. 

[96] 



^ THE BATTLE OF LIEGNITZ ^ 

The cavalry made ready for the onset. The thun- 
der of artillery resounded over hill and valley, and 
in less than ten minutes the battle was raging. 
Frederick's invincible spirit worked wonders. Gen- 
eral Laudon had not expected such a reception and 
was utterly astonished to find a powerful force 
confronting him when he expected to surprise the 
Prussians in their camp. But in this emergency 
everything depended upon energy and courage. He 
made a brave assault, but the Prussians made a 
braver resistance. They fought like lions, and if it 
had been lighter the enemy would have been merci- 
lessly slaughtered. When the sun rose it illumi- 
nated the field covered with bodies and broken 
weapons. The four hours' sanguinary conflict was 
decided. The Prussians won a complete victory, 
and the Austrians lost ten thousand men, beside 
twenty-three standards and eighty- two cannon. 
Thus ended the battle of Liegnitz, August 15, 1760. 



[97] 




Chapter XI 
The Victory of Torgau Surprises Frederick 

I AVALRY and infantry were so exhausted 
by the bloody work that the King granted 
them a three hours' rest. Frederick went 

through the camp-lines, where there was 

great rejoicing over the victory, one of the most 
important results of which was the reawakening of 
the old battle spirit. There had not been such a 
glorious event since the disaster at Kunersdorf. 
He commended their valor, and assured them they 
should be rewarded at the proper time. The regi- 
ment w^hich had lost its decorations at the close of 
the battle before Dresden behaved so bravely that 
the King uncovered his head before its commander 
and cordially thanked him. One old gray-bearded 
warrior, hoping that the King, while in this gracious 
mood, might restore to the regiment its trophies 
and sidearms, stepped forward and pleaded for 
them. The King quietly listened and then with 
much emotion replied : 

" Yes, children, you have done handsomely. I 
thank you. You shall have everything back. All 
[98] 



^ THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

is forgotten and forgiven. But this day I shall 
never forget/' 

Loud cheers filled the air at the regiment's good 
fortune. After they were rested they formed on the 
field, strewn with the debris of battle, took the 
cannon and prisoners along, and made a three hours' 
march on that same day. This one victory placed 
Silesia, partly captured from the Austrians, in 
Prussian hands. 

The King pursued the Austrians vigorously, and 
used his utmost endeavors to force them from their 
position. In one of his movements it became 
necessary to burn a village in the Silesian hills, to 
keep the Austrians from occupying a certain height. 
An officer, whose mother belonged in the village, 
happened to receive the order to burn it, and per- 
formed his duty without a moment's hesitation. 
This induced the King to interest himself in the 
family. He not only reimbursed her generously, but 
every time he met the officer he remembered the 
occurrence and inquired about his mother's health. 
The unconditional surrender of Silesia made that 
country very dear to him. He used to call it " The 
Pearl of his Crown," and used his utmost effi^rts to 
free it from the hated enemy. 

Greatly to his disappointment, he was suddenly 
compelled to abandon further pursuit, for he learned 
that the Mark was in danger of falling into the 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

enemy's hands. Forty-eight thousand Austrians 
and Russians had set out to capture BerHn, and 
reached the frontier unchecked. They knew that 
the weak city garrison v/as in no condition to resist 
the advance of such a strong army. The Prussian 
Residence actually fell into the hands of the Russian 
General Tottleben, October 4, 1760. Reports of 
cruelties practised by the Russians on the march had 
preceded their coming, and the people were greatly 
apprehensive of violence. Their apprehensions, 
however, were needless, as Tottleben was a very 
noble and humane man and exerted himself con- 
stantly to suppress all acts of violence. In reality, 
the Russians conducted themselves courteously as 
compared with the Saxons and Austrians, who com- 
mitted outrageous acts of violence and vandalism.^ 
For eight days they gave free rein to their rapacity 
and maltreatment, when suddenly the rumor spread 
and was publicly talked about that the King was 
approaching. Its effect was electrical. Taking all 
they could lay hands on, they hurriedly made off, 



1 *^In Charlottenburg, certain Saxon-Bnihl dragoons, who by their conduct, 
might have been the dragoons of Attila, smashed the furniture and the doors, cut 
the pictures, much maltreated the poor people, and what was reckoned still more 
tragical, overset the poor Polignac Collection of Antiques and Class! calities ; not 
only knocking off noses and arms, but beating them small, lest reparation by cement 
should be possible, their officers, Pirna people, looking quietly on. A scandalous 
proceeding, thought everj-body, friend or foe, — especially thought Frederick ; 
whose indignation at the ruin of Charlottenburg came out in way of reprisal by and 
by." — Carlyle i ^^ Life of Frederick the Great,* ^ 

[100] 



^ THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

for they feared his wrath. When Frederick heard 
that the mere rumor of his approach had so alarmed 
the enemy, he laughed loudly and said in the 
presence of his men : " And such louts as these 
would cope with us Prussians ! " 

He liked to joke with his soldiers, and took it in 
the best of humor when they joked back with him. 
On the march from Silesia to the Mark, which was 
a very quick one, the King often said to them when 
they were tired : " Straighten up, children, straighten 
up,'' meaning that they should march straighter and 
in better order. 

" Fritz, we can't do it," was the reply ; and one 
hussar, whom the King had personally addressed, 
said to him : " Fritz, I can't do it ; I can't pull up 
my boots," at which the King laughed heartily. 

It was on such intimate footing as this that the . 
King stood with his men. He also knew just what 
demands he could make of them. They willingly 
made their utmost exertions on the long, hard 
marches. They would gladly die for him. He 
naturally shared all their troubles and deprivations. 
He had good reason therefore to write these words 
to one of his friends : 

"You can have no conception of our dreadful 
fatigues. This movement is worse than any of its 
predecessors. Sometimes I do not know which 
way to turn. But I will not weary you with the 

[lOl] 



§^FREDERIGK THE GREATS 

recital of my troubles and anxieties. All my happi- 
ness is buried with the loved and revered ones to 
whom my heart clings. The close of my life is full 
of sorrow and pain." 

As already said, Frederick found no enemy in 
Charlottenburg and its vicinity. Daun had fallen 
back to Saxony and taken a strong position at Tor- 
gau, so that by skilfully distributing his force he 
could drive back the Prussians and hold almost the 
whole country. Frederick found himself in a very 
bad position. The Russians were on the Oder in 
his rear, and in front the Austrians occupied an 
almost impregnable position. Under such circum- 
stances it was difficult to find a safe way out. He 
hastily decided to move against the Austrians, but 
was at once deterred from so doing when he found 
their position was impregnable. It was now really 
a question of life or death. The King realized 
only too well that he could hardly have found a 
more disagreeable situation, but he did not disclose 
his anxiety. He forced himself to conceal his real 
feelings under a mask of cheerfulness rather than 
risk losing everything. It is even asserted indeed 
"^that in the last years of the Seven Years' War, when 
Frederick saw that the strength of his army was 
steadily diminishing while his enemies maintained 
their numbers, he carried opium with him with 
which to take his life if at last he had to succumb 
[102] 



^THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

to their united strength. He said to a friend at 
this time : 

^ «^ " I shall never see the moment that forces me to 
make a disadvantageous peace. Either I will bury 
myself under the ruins of the Fatherland, or, should 
fate forbid me that consolation, I will put an end to 
my troubles when I no longer can bear them. I 
have acted according to the inner voice of conscience 
and honor, which guides and has always guided my 
steps, and my conduct will always be grounded on 
those principles. I sacrificed my youth to my 
father, my riper years to the Fatherland ; now I 
think I have the right to dispose of my old age. 
I have said to you, and I repeat it, never will I put 
my hand to a disadvantageous peace. I am deter- 
mined to finish this campaign and to venture the 
most desperate things, for I will conquer or honorably 
die." 

How heavily his anxiety wore upon him at this 
time is shown in another letter to a friend, in which 
he says : 

" I am slowly wasting away ; I am like a living 
body gradually growing speechless, and losing limb 
by limb. Heaven help us ! We need it. You 
always talk of me and my dangers. Do you not 
know it is not necessary for me to live ? It is only 
necessary to do my duty and fight for the Father- 
land and save it if possible." 

[103] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

In such a despondent mood as this was the King 
in the presence of the enemy at Torgau ! What 
was to be done ? If he quietly abandoned the place 
to the enemy, he m.ust spend the Winter in his own 
country, already nearly exhausted. If he attacked 
and was defeated, he would lose all Prussia. He 
must venture everything, but before acting he de- 
cided to summon all his generals for a consultation. 
This took place on the morning of November 3, 
1760. General Zieten, one of his most trusted 
friends, did not immediately appear, which greatly 
disturbed the King. 

" Gentlemen," he said to them, "we can do noth- 
ing, for one of our number is not here.'' 

He anxiously looked in the direction whence 
Zieten should come. At last the old general came 
riding up. Frederick hastened to meet him, em- 
braced him, and said : 
♦ * " Come, my dear Zieten, I have been anxiously 
waiting for you, for to-day will be a memorable one. 
Either I shall conquer or I shall end my troubles, 
for my position is very critical." 

" What ! " said the pious old Zieten, as he dis- 
mounted and stroked his beard, " do you doubt the 
help of God? He has stood by us often and will 
do so to-day. Your soldiers are full of courage. 
They trust their God." 

These words restored the King's confidence. 
[104] 



^ THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

" Well, my dear Zieten/' he replied, " if you think 
it all right, we will face the inevitable/' 

Taking Zieten's arm, they withdrew from the 
others for a time and had a confidential interview, 
after which he returned in better spirits. It was 
decided to attack, and the aides were soon flying in 
all directions, carrying the orders to the generals. 
The attack began that day. 

The Prussian army was in two divisions, one led 
by the King, and the other by Zieten, who got in 
the rear of the enemy to attack his entrenchments. 
The King's division consisted often thousand gren- 
adiers and was posted in some woods in battle order. 
When Frederick advanced with his vanguard upon 
Daun's entrenchments he was greeted by a murder- 
ous fire from two hundred cannon, so directed that 
even before the troops reached the enemy's lines 
they were almost unfitted for action, as they were 
deafened by the terrible crashes of the artillery. 
Notwithstanding the din and confusion, the King 
retained his composure, and turning to one of his 
generals, said : " What a horrible cannonading ! 
Did you ever hear anything hke it?" 

The effect was frightful. In a short time nearly 
all the brave grenadiers were shot down. Their 
places were filled by fresh regiments and the cavalry 
was ordered to advance, but it was useless. Nothing 
could withstand that murderous fire. In the mean- 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

time Frederick himself was exposed to the greatest 
danger. Shots ploughed up the earth so near him 
that his horse was very restive. At last he had to 
make a show of composure. He rode from the first 
rank to the second, and came to a dragoon regiment. 

"Well, children, how goes it? '' he asked. 

Some answered, " Badly, Your Majesty ; we are 
standing here letting them shoot us down, and we 
cannot defend ourselves.'' 

" Wait a little," said the King to them, " the fir- 
ing will soon cease; then we will attack them." 

While saying these words a cannon-ball came so 
close to him that his horse jumped to one side, 
knocked over a drum, and seemed about to run away 
with him. The King smiled, and said to the drummer: 

"You tell the Austrians if they don't soon march 
off, I will take their guns away from them." 

A new attack was ordered, but the Austrians 
resumed their destructive fire. At this crisis the 
King noticed there was a great gap on the right 
wing, between the Garde du Corps and the gens 
d'armes. He rode where the shots were falling 
thickest, to strengthen the weak spot. When this 
had been done, he remained there a short time, 
watching with his glass one of the batteries which 
was playing havoc with the Garde du Corps. A 
corporal of the fourth company remarked to a 
guard : " If we have got to stand here and be shot 
[io6] 



^ THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

at, because they won't let us attack, give me a 
pinch of snufF." 

The guard took his box from his pouch, and as 
he was Hfting the cover, a cannon-ball shot off his 
head. In the most cold-blooded way, the corporal 
turned to his second neighbor and said : " Well, 
now, you give me a pinch ; that one has gone to 
the d— 1." 

While Lieutenant von Byern, who afterward 
became leader of a cuirassier regiment, was speak- 
ing with the man about the accident, another ball 
killed his horse. The King, who had been watching 
them closely, rode up to the lieutenant, and then 
said to the corporal: "You have the proper cool- 
ness of a soldier. I shall remember you." 

The corporal was overjoyed because the King 
had honored him by addressing him, which aroused 
his hope of promotion. 

The Garde du Corps suffered greatly in this 
battle, for they were exposed to the fire of the 
battery already mentioned, and every discharge 
killed some of them. The King greatly deplored 
it, but he could not relieve them right away. He 
rode up to them and said in a tone of deep 
sympathy : " Children, only have patience for a few 
minutes. Things will quickly change." 

At that instant a shot came close to the King 
and killed the file leader of the fourth company of 

[107] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

the second squadron. His next neighbor said to 
the King : " Be careful of yourself, Your Majesty, 
and ride to a safer place. It is more important you 
should live than we." 

The King turned a grateful look to the speaker and 
said : "My dear son, I thank you for your honest 
intentions and good-will. I shall not forget you." 

Hardly had the King gone when a shot killed this 
honest man on the spot. 

The attack was renewed by the Prussians, but 
their valor was of no avail against the strongly en- 
trenched enemy. Night was approaching, but the 
Austrians had not been dislodged from their posi- 
tion. Firing was still kept up vigorously on both 
sides, and the combatants were shot down in rows. 
Frederick himself did not escape untouched. A 
bullet stunned him, and with the words, " I am 
killed," he fell. Two of his aides instantly ran up 
to him and searched for the wound, but his thick 
pelisse had saved him. Opening it, they found 
that the bullet had passed through his heavy cloth- 
ing, but had not pierced his body. The King 
speedily came to himself and coolly said : " It is a 
matter of no consequence." The bullet, however, 
had made a bad contusion on his breast. 

As night came on, confusion spread through the 
ranks, and Frederick was not a little disturbed about 
the result of the battle. He looked upon it as lost, 
[io8] 



^THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

and the Austrians were rejoicing over the victory 
they supposed they had gained. Both sides, how- 
ever, were premature in their conclusions, for almost 
immediately the situation took on a new aspect. 

In carrying out his orders, Zieten had had to 
contend with almost insuperable obstacles before 
he could get to the place to which he had been 
assigned. After almost superhuman exertions he 
reached, toward evening, the Siiptitz heights. His 
soldiers dragged their cannon by hand and planted 
them on a hill near the enemy. With drums beat- 
ing and cannon thundering, Zieten advanced to the 
attack, and at the very first onset captured a battery, 
causing great alarm and confusion among the Aus- 
trians. Field-Marshal Daun rallied all his forces 
and tried to drive the Prussians out of his entrench- 
ments, but the effort was fruitless. Zieten, clearly 
realizing what was at stake, so continuously pressed 
his assaults that the Austrians could not withstand 
them. They began to waver, and General Daun 
was so badly wounded that he had to be carried 
from the field. This new misfortune increased 
their panic, and Zieten gave them no chance to get 
over it. He hurled his entire force upon them, and 
the victory was won. 

The King, meanwhile, knew nothing of Zieten's 
successful attack and its important results, as the 
intervening darkness cut off his view of the field. 

[109] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

Fancying the battle was lost, or at least that the 
victory was doubtful, he rode to the neighboring 
village of Elsnitz, where he went into a church, as 
all other places were filled with wounded. It was a 
very cold night. While tired-out, shivering soldiers 
sought rest and warmth by the watch-fires, Fred- 
erick sat upon the lowest step of the altar and by 
the dim light of a lamp wrote his orders for attack 
on the following day, for he was determined to 
make the battle decisive, whatever the cost. It was 
hardly daybreak when he mounted his horse and 
rode out of the village. He had not gone far when 
he saw a cavalry troop approaching, with Zieten at 
its head. In the tone of an officer reporting, he 
said to the King, '^ The enemy is beaten and has 
retreated.'' 

Frederick was much excited by the announce- 
ment. With the activity of a boy, he jumped from 
his horse, Zieten following his example, and em- 
braced his faithful general. Zieten cried like a 
child. Then the two rode back to the field, by 
different routes, to acquaint the troops with the 
joyful news and thank them for the bravery they 
had shown. 

The King rode along the front, from the left to 
the right wing, and approached the generals who 
were gathered about the watch-fire. Frederick dis- 
mounted and joined the brave officers and men of 

[1.0] 



^ THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

his division, who were waiting for dawn to renew 
the attack upon the Austrians if they had not 
retreated. The King talked much with his soldiers 
and praised them for their valor. The grenadiers, 
knowing his amiability and condescension, crowded 
nearer and nearer about him. One of them, with 
whom the King had several times conversed and to 
whom he had often given money, was bold enough 
to ask him where he had been during the battle. 
They were accustomed to seeing him at their head, 
leading them into the thickest of the fight. This 
time, however, not an eye had seen him, and it was 
not right for him to forsake them. The King re- 
plied most graciously to the grenadier, saying that 
during most of the battle he had been at the left 
wing of the army and therefore could not be with 
his own men. While saying this, he unbuttoned 
his blue overcoat, as he was getting too warm. As 
he did so, the grenadier noticed a bullet falling 
from his clothes and saw the wound on his breast 
through the rent in his uniform. Excitedly he 
shouted : " Thou art still the old Fritz ! Thou 
sharest every danger with us. For thee we would die 
gladly. Long live the King! Three times three!" 
There was the greatest enthusiasm as Frederick 
rode up and down the line, shaking hands with 
this and that old graybeard and addressing a kindly 
word to everyone. On this occasion the old gren- 

[in] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

adiers were smoking wretched tobacco in their stub 
pipes right under his nose. An officer, who knew 
his disUke of tobacco, said to them, ^^ Step back a 
little. His Majesty cannot endure tobacco smoke." 

"No, children, stay w^here you are," replied the 
King, with a kindly smile. " I don't mind the smell." 

He was thus gracious to his soldiers — for it was 
well known that he was averse to tobacco all his 
life — and in this and other ways was constantly 
manifesting his regard for them. 

The loss of life at Torgau was very great on both 
sides. The Austrians lost twenty thousand men 
beside fifty-five cannon and twenty-seven standards, 
and the Prussians suffered almost as severely. 
Frederick, writing about it to a friend, said : 

" We have just defeated the Austrians. They 
have lost an extraordinary number as well as we. 
This victory will perhaps allow us a little rest this 
Winter and that is about all. Next year we must 
begin anew. I have been hit by a shot, which 
grazed my breast, but it is only a bruise, — little 
pain, but no danger, — therefore I shall be as busy 
as ever." 

Large as was the number killed in this battle, it 
was compensated for by its important results, for 
Prussia was saved and Saxony was once more freed 
from the Austrians. The Russians had retired again 
into Poland, and the Swedes had sought refuge in 

[112] 



^ THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

the farthest corners of Pomerania. The King de- 
cided to make his Winter quarters in Leipsic. On 
his way there, he reached a Saxon village near Wit- 
tenburg and took lodgings with a preacher. De- 
lighted with the honor conferred upon him, he 
went to the door to meet the King, and said : ^^ Come 
in, thou blessed of the Lord ! Why dost thou 
stand outside? '' 

The King regarded the preacher, a venerable old 
man, with a kindly smile, and said to him : *^ How 
many taxpayers are there in this village? " 

The preacher was so astonished at the question 
that he could hardly reply, although he knew the 
number very well. At last he collected his wits 
and said : " Twenty-two." 

" And how much do they raise ? " 

The preacher stated the amount of grain in 
bushels as nearly as he could. 

" Has the village suffered much during the war ? '' 

"In the last eight weeks. Your Majesty, your 
troops and the Austrians have alternately foraged 
here. We are about at the end, for we only have 
our lives and cabins left." 

" Who represented the Austrians here ? " 

" General Luzinsky." 

" Where did he stop ? " 

" I had the honor of entertaining him in my 
house as well as I could." 

8 ["3] 



^ FREDERICK THE GREAT ^ 

" So ? Did you also call him * blessed of the 
Lord ' when he came ? '' 

"By no means, but I could not curse him/' 

" Oh, yes ! You are a Saxon. Now I shall see 
whether I bring more blessings to this village than 
Luzinsky." 

The King was shown to his room, and made 
much of the preacher, who greatly entertained him. 
When he departed he paid him a hundred Friedrich 
d'ors^ and left an order that if Prussian troops came 
to the village they should take nothing, and should 
pay for everything they got outside their quarters. 

Frederick always liked to talk with the country 
clergy. He resumed his march to Leipsic in more 
cheerful spirits, but did not enter the city at once. 
He had his night's lodgings at a parson's house in 
one of the villages near Leipsic. He was kept 
awake all night, for the house was overrun with 
mice, which made much noise in his room. Fred- 
erick arose at daybreak, called the pastor, and said : 
" Listen ! Do you know anything about inter- 
preting dreams ? " 

" Not particularly, Your Majesty, for I am not 
much of a believer in them." 

" You may not believe in them, but many a dream 
has a real meaning. I will tell you of mine. I 
dreamed your rooms were full of mice. What does 
that signify ? " 



^ THE VICTORY OF TORGAU ^ 

'' I don't know." 

" Well, I think Heaven means meto understand by 
this that my commissaries are good at plundering." 

" Oh, no. Your Majesty, I fear your dream was 
the result of natural causes ; for, alas ! I am very 
much plagued by these vermin in my house and I 
do not know how to get rid of them." 

" So ? then I must be wrong. Now you take 
this Friedrich (Tor and buy yourself a mouse-trap. 
Perhaps then I may sleep better the next time I 
come." 

Frederick's enemies continued hoping that the 
time would come, in the execution of their plans, 
when they should find him exhausted by the weak- 
ness of his forces ; and prospects indeed seemed to 
point that way. Doubtless he gained much by the 
victory at Torgau, but his situation still was a diffi- 
cult one. He greatly deplored the losses his army 
had suffered, for he saw no way of replacing them. 
Signs of discontent were also beginning to appear 
among his troops because they were not regularly 
paid. This induced him, immediately after the 
battle at Torgau, to abandon his original plan of 
retaking Dresden. The following conversation 
shows how serious he was in this purpose. Im- 
mediately after the victory a grenadier asked : " Your 
Majesty, shall we now go into good Winter 
quarters ? " 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

" We must first retake Dresden. After that, I 
will look out for you and you shall be satisfied." 

In view of dissatisfactions among the soldiers and 
the approach of cold, rainy weather, the King de- 
cided, at the close of the year 1760, to go into 
Winter quarters. 



[..6] 



Chapter XII 
The Camp at Bunzelwiltz 



I/' — j j — ^HE next year began less fortunately than 
1760 closed. The enemy determined to 
crush Frederick by weight of numbers. 
It was a long time, however, before military 
operations commenced. The King's forces had been 
so weakened that he dared not take the aggressive 
without reserves to fall back upon. Nor did the 
enemy dare to attack singly. Every effort was made 
to overwhelm him by united strength. With this end 
in view, in August, seventy-two thousand Austrians 
under General Laudon joined the Russians, making 
a total of one hundred and thirty thousand men, 
while Frederick's army was hardly fifty thousand 
strong. Frederick had never before confronted so 
strong a combination. 

At the beginning of Spring the King left Saxony 
for Silesia, most of which was in the enemy's 
possession. The march was made swiftly, for the 
Austrians were establishing strong positions here 
and there. One day, about noon, he approached a 
Saxon village near the Bohemian frontier, in the 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

vicinity of which an entrenched position was held 
by a detachment under the command of an Austrian 
captain. As soon as he noticed the King's arrival 
at the village, he began a vigorous fire. Frederick 
was leaning against a shed, deep in thought, and at 
first seemed to pay no attention to the firing. His 
aides besought him to leave, as the place was too 
dangerous. 

" The bullet which is to hit me," said the King, 
"will come from above." 

A few minutes later a shot struck a post three 
yards away, quickly followed by a second. Re- 
marking, " They are growing too discourteous," he 
ordered the destruction of the nest. The entrench- 
ment was stormed and the captain and his men were 
made prisoners. The Prussian soldiers took his 
watch, purse, and whatever else of value he had 
about him, and at last cut off the gold ornaments on 
his hat. This he pronounced an insult, and de- 
manded to be taken to the King. After a respectful 
greeting, the King said : 

"Your servant, my dear Captain. What can I 
do for you ? " The captain complained of his ill 
treatment. 

" Do you not know the usages of war ? " said the 
King. " This is not a processional. Thank God 
that you escaped with your life. My people are very 
considerate after all." 
[ii8] 



^CAMP AT BUNZELWILTZ^ 

The captain was surprised at the light manner in 
which the King spoke, for, as he afterward said, he 
had always supposed the conqueror of Silesia to be 
a strong, imperious man. 

The march was immediately resumed, and when- 
ever Austrians showed themselves they were dis- 
persed. Too weak to attack the Austrians at that 
time investing Schweidnitz, the King kept on to 
Bunzelwiltz, a very favorable position not far from 
Schweidnitz, where an entrenched camp was estab- 
lished in such a scientific and formidable manner 
that it looked like a fortress. The work of entrench- 
ing was rushed at every point, and officers joined 
hands with the soldiers in the work. Earthworks 
were also constructed in the churchyard in the vil- 
lage of Jauernick by soldiers sent for that purpose, 
who worked under the supervision of an officer. As 
they were throwing up the earth an old box was 
struck. They did not remove it with the usual care, 
but broke it open a little and found there was money 
in it. They would have instantly pounced upon it, 
but the officer drove them back and took the box 
himself, assuring them he would divide the money 
fairly when the work was done. They were satis- 
fied with this, and the box was placed by the church 
door. The officer quietly retired to an unseen 
position, took off his stockings and went back with 
bare feet in his boots. He then took the box, 

[119] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

shook the money out when unobserved, placed the 
stockings on the bottom of it and threw in what 
money it would hold. When the men were through 
with their work they asked for the box. The officer 
brought it at once, emptied out the money, and 
showed them there was nothing more in it but some 
old rags. There was great dissatisfaction, however, 
for they suspected the captain was not dealing 
fairly with them ; seeing which, he threatened them 
with a stick. At this juncture the King came up to 
inspect the work. He asked what the matter was. 
They related the whole occurrence to him, where- 
upon he requested them to show him the box, the 
money, and the pretended old rags. An old 
grenadier, who had the latter in his hands, said : 
" Your Majesty, these are not old rags, but a 
pair of linen-thread stockings with a name on 
them." 

Thereupon he showed them to the King, who 

clearly enough saw the name " V " on them. 

The King summoned the officer and asked his 
name. He answered " V ." 

" Well," said the King to the men, " don't you 
see the money belongs to him ? His ancestors 
buried it here. Here is his name on the stockings, 
as plain as if it were put there recently. Stupids, 
what do you mean ? Give the officer his money. 
I will have the box filled with genuine two-groschen 
[120J 



^CAMPAT BUNZELWILTZ^ 

pieces, and they shall be divided equally among you. 
Will that satisfy you ? " 

" Oh, yes. Your Majesty," was the answer of 
all. They were all the better satisfied as the coins 
in the box were mostly little old copper pieces. 
In this way the King saved the officer from the 
embarrassment naturally consequent upon discovery 
of dishonesty, and left him standing speechless and 
ashamed. 

The defences were at last completed, and in that 
strong position Frederick awaited whatever might 
happen. As he was situated he could not under- 
take an attack, and was forced to act upon the de- 
fensive. Unusual precautions were taken in the 
camp. During the day the men slept by turns, 
and at night officers and men were awake and ready 
for action. As a rule the King left his tent every 
night, betook himself to a battery, and there awaited 
the morning under the open heavens. One night, 
as he was sitting upon the ground by the fire, en- 
veloped in his cloak, he seemed to be tired and 
somewhat sleepy. A soldier of the Wolfersdorf 
regiment, noticing it, said to him : " I will make 
Your Majesty a pillow.'' 

" How will you do it? " said the King. 

The soldier took off his knapsack and fixed it so 
the King could rest his head upon it. He could 
not sleep, however, and so he talked with the 

[121] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

soldier about his native land, his service, and other 
things. The latter asked the King several rather 
bold questions, which he answered very affably. 
The following conversation occurred between them : 

Soldier. "If Your Majesty should be taken 
prisoner, how could you get released, as you are a 
King ? " 

King. " As a general, not otherwise.*' 

Soldier. " Hm ! I don't believe that. You are 
more than a general." 

King. " No ! With the army I am only a 
general." 

Soldier (shaking his head). " They would 
get rich booty if they took you." 

King. " Oh, no, they would not. I have not 
a groschen in my pockets." 

Soldier. "Your Majesty is trying to deceive 
me." 

King. " No ! I tell you I have not a kreutzer " 
(and to convince him, the King emptied his pockets). 
" There ! do you not see I am right ? " 

Soldier. "That is strange, but — you have a 
beautiful ring, which certainly is worth something." 

King. "Well — and what do you think it is 
worth ? Give a guess." (Saying this, the King held 
up the ring for his examination.) 

Soldier. " The ring may well have cost ten 
thousand thalers." 
[122] 



S^CAMP AT BUNZELWILTZ^ 

King. " Fool ! I will let you have it for five 
hundred thalers, and even then make money/' 

Soldier. " I would not believe that to all 
eternity. It is not true.'' 

King. " Certainly it is. Look here — I will count 
up the cost. This little stone here is perhaps worth 
three hundred and some odd thalers. The large 
one in the middle is a table diamond, which at the 
utmost did not cost over thirty thalers, and the rest 
of the ring, outside of the plain setting, is of no 
value." 

Soldier. " I certainly would n't have believed it." 

Day had dawned in the meantime. The King 
arose and ordered an aide, who had come up to 
make report, to give the soldier a Friedrich d'or^ 
saying at the same time, " Are you convinced now 
that I have no money ? " 

Frederick often availed himself of the darkness 
to ride about and see what was going on. Once 
the King and Zieten, riding early in the morning, 
came to a little wood. Seeing no signs of an enemy 
Frederick began whistling softly, as was often his 
habit when not talking. All at once, as they 
ascended an eminence, Zieten noticed some of the 
enemy's troopers in the distance, wearing white 
cloaks. 

^^ Be quiet, Your Majesty. Quick, put my 
white undercoat over your shoulders and ride 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

slowly. They will think we are friends coming to 
meet them." 

This evidently was the Austrians' opinion, for 
they seemed to be directing their course straight 
toward them ; but suddenly the King and Zieten 
put spurs to their horses, changed their direction, 
and fortunately escaped. The King laughed and 
said: "My dear Zieten, that was a neat trick. 
Now, can I go on with my whistling ? " 

As was always his habit, the King continued to 
share all dangers and privations with his soldiers. 
Like them, he ate out of tin dishes and the hard 
ground was his bed whatever the weather might be. 

" Take along a bundle of straw," he once said, as he 
started for a ride through the camp, '^ so that I won't 
have to lie on the bare ground, as I did last night." 

The King was forced to remain inactive for three 
weeks in this distressing situation, for the combined 
Russian and Austrian forces were stretched out until 
they shut him in on all sides. He was in a critical 
condition. His stores were giving out and his 
troops were getting uneasy. He resolved therefore 
to risk a decisive stroke. It was fortunate for him 
that Laudon did not have supreme command, else 
he would have been crushed. The larger part of 
the army was under command of the Russian 
Field-Marshal Butterlin, who disliked Laudon and 
frequently quarrelled with him. This of course 
[124] 



^CAMP AT BUNZELWILTZ^ 

prevented cooperation. If one favored attacking, 
the other would refuse ; if one gave an order to 
assault at a certain point, the other would issue an 
exactly contrary order. In this dissension lay the 
possibiHty of the King's escape, though he did not 
know it, for he had never heard even a hint of their 
enmity. His situation appeared to him desperate 
enough. Whichever way he turned he saw no 
prospect of escape. This greatly disturbed him. 
With an anxious heart he often hurried to old 
Zieten's little hut for consolation. This brave gen- 
eral confidently looked for better days in the future. 
His devotion and loyalty to the King never per- 
mitted him to doubt the success of his undertak- 
ings. In sheer desperation, the King would often 
say : " It cannot be done ; it is impossible." 

Whenever he said this, Zieten would reply : 
" Have courage. Your Majesty. Everything will 
come out right." Once he said this with so much 
assurance that the King quickly asked : " Have 
you secured the help of some new allies?" 

"No," replied the general, "only our old help 
from above, which will never forsake us." 

"Ah!" sighed the King, "the days of miracles 
are over." 

"There is no need of miracles," replied the pious 
old hero. " He is on our side and will not let us 
be defeated." 

[1^5] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

Brave Zieten spoke truly, for three weeks after- 
ward the Russians suddenly broke camp and de- 
parted. The cause was partly the disagreement 
between Butterlin and Laudon, but the principal 
reason for the sudden exit was the difficulty of pro- 
curing subsistence for man and beast. Silesia had 
been the scene of war so long and had been so rav- 
aged that its people had to kill most of their animals 
for food and had been living for some time in a 
most wretched plight. It was manifestly impossible 
therefore to feed this great army. To save his, the 
Russian general had no alternative but to break 
camp and hurry off to Poland. How delighted 
was the King when he saw that he was freed from 
the enemy's investment ! It was with a strange 
feeling he left the prison from which he had never 
expected to escape alive. 

The close of the year, however, brought fresh 
trouble. The fortress of Schweidnitz, in Silesia, at 
last fell into the hands of the Austrians, and this 
strengthened the Russian force at Colberg, in the 
East. Frederick's immediate situation was not very 
enviable in any sense, for there had been a lack of 
subsistence for his troops for a long time, resulting 
in general discontent as well as disobedience. His 
financial resources were also well-nigh exhausted. 
But what made him most despondent was the great 
shrinkage of his numerical strength and the apparent 
[126] 



S^CAMP AT BUNZELWILTZ^ 

impossibility of making it good. It was no longer 
possible to maintain discipline among his troops 
after they had been reduced to the bare necessities. 
The Garde du Corps and gens d'armeSy who had 
been most loyally devoted to the King, now loudly 
asserted that if they were attacked, they would sur- 
render. Such was the spiritless condition 'of his 
army ! Is it any wonder the King was dejected as 
he contemplated the situation? Only his feeling of 
duty and his love for the Fatherland helped him 
to bear this heavy burden of trouble and care. In 
a letter written immediately after the taking of 
Schweidnitz, he says : 

" This painful duty of service to the Fatherland 
is a heavy burden. With sadness I see its glory 
dimmed, its people despairing of deliverance, and 
devastation everywhere. Fatherland ! Beloved 
name! Thy sorrows have moved me to devote 
the last remaining energies of my unfortunate life to 
thy rescue. Away with fruitless complaints — I will 
again take the field. Patriotism inspires me. A 
new day is dawning. I will revenge the State and 
end its troubles. I will forget my own distress and 
think only of it. My strong arm shall be its sup- 
port. Notwithstanding his inclinations one must 
swim with the current, die for Fatherland, or ac- 
complish his purposes." 

[127] 



Chapter XIII 
The Dawn of Peace 



1/ I j — ^HE King entered upon another year with 
serious anxiety, for he could not escape 
the conviction that the longer the war 
continued the worse was his situation. 
His army was continually dwindling away. The 
old and tried troops, with which he had almost done 
wonders at the beginning of field operations, were 
now nearly all gone. His former sources of money 
had also run dry. Saxony, which until now had 
helped him greatly with its generous contributions, 
had paid out its last mark, and Prussia was so ut- 
terly exhausted that it could do nothing in any 
direction. With the enemy it was different. They 
confronted him with renewed strength and in- 
creased numbers. The combination of the two 
great armies was the most serious danger to his 
small force. It was by this combination that the 
fall of Schweidnitz was hastened. Frederick saw 
no prospect of victory anywhere, and yet the truth 
of his saying, ^^ When necessity is greatest, help is 
nearest," was confirmed at that very time. 
[128] 



^THE DAWN OF PEACES 

The Empress Elizabeth of Russia/ a faithful ally 
of Maria Theresa, died January 5, 1762. Both 
empresses, in alliance with France, had sworn to ruin 
the King of Prussia. Elizabeth's successor was 
Peter III, who was friendly to the King, and who 
at the very beginning of the war expressed his 
regret that Russia had taken part in hostilities 
against the King whom he greatly esteemed for his 
heroism. Frederick knew this, and hence was in- 
clined to regard the death of the Empress as a 
fortunate event which would make for his success. 
He reckoned rightly, for hardly had Peter ascended 
the throne before he sent a messenger with orders 
to his army to retire from all of Frederick's prov- 
inces, to release all prisoners without further cere- 
mony, and hand over the contents of the great 
storehouses in Pomerania to the people living there 
without cost. In place of a bitter enemy, the King 
had a warm friend in Russia. On May fifth, Peter 
made peace with Prussia ; and not only this, but soon 
afterward he sent Czernichef with his twenty thou- 
sand men to join the Prussians. When this was 
known, Sweden, which had also been a party to 
the alliance, out of deference to Russia, decided to 
forego the pleasure of making war upon Prussia 



1 Elizabeth Petrovna, bom December 29, 1709, Empress of Russia from 1741 
to 1762, was the daughter of Peter the Great and Catharine I. She was the 
founder of the Moscow University and St. Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts. 

9 [129] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

any longer. It did not waste any time in acquaint- 
ing Frederick with its wishes. In fact, the propo- 
sition was made so suddenly that the great King 
facetiously said to the messenger who brought it : 

" I was not aware I had been at. war with 
Sweden. To be sure, I have heard of some deal- 
ings which my General Belling has had with that 
people, but they shall have peace if they wish it" 
The treaty of peace with Sweden was concluded 
May twenty-second. 

How suddenly the aspect of his affairs changed ! 
All at once Frederick was free from all danger, and 
was in a position to attack once more. Up to this 
time his weakness had forced him to act on the 
defensive. Now he was able to take the offensive, 
and make a stout resistance to his remaining ene- 
mies. He did not wait long, but marched his army 
with its Russian reenforcement into Silesia, to expel 
the Austrians and save that province from the 
enemy. Daun was seized with consternation when 
he heard of the King's advance. He hastily fell 
back, took a new position on the Burkersdorf hills, 
and entrenched himself as well as he could. It was 
Frederick's firm intention to attack the enemy at 
that point, and he had even fixed the day upon 
which he would measure strength with the foe, but 
an entirely unexpected as well as unfortunate event 
occurred, which frustrated all his plans and menaced 
[1 30] 



^THE DAWN OF PEACES 

both him and the Fatherland. After ruling six 
months, Peter was dethroned by conspirators, and 
died shortly afterward.^ His wife, Catharine, was 
made regent by the dominant party. The shrewd 
Frederick may have anticipated such an occurrence, 
for, in all his letters to the young Emperor, he 
gave him much fatherly advice, and particularly 
entreated him to be prudent in his administration, 
and conciliatory in all his relations to his wife. 
This was a fortunate thing for the King, for when 
the ambitious Empress read this correspondence 
she was so deeply touched by Frederick's attitude 
toward her that she hastened negotiations for peace, 
declared she would have nothing to do with the 
war, and furthermore ordered her armies to return 
home at once. 

The friendly sentiments of the Empress were 
very agreeable to Frederick, and yet he was greatly 
disappointed, as the Empress' order came just at 
the time he was about to strike a blow at the 
enemy. It was necessary to strike quickly, and 
yet he must act very cautiously. He knew the 
weak side of General Czernichef, his love of gold, 
and with this inducement he persuaded him to 
make a show of marching out with his army and 



1 Peter III was born in Holstein in 1728. He was the son of Charles Fred- 
erick, Duke of Holstein, and Anna, daughter of Peter the Great. He was assassi- 
nated, and his wife, who was an accomplicei succeeded him. 

[131] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

occupying a threatening position, with the under- 
standing that after three days he should return 
home. It was a rash act on the general's part, and 
one that might easily have cost him his head ; 
but his good-will to the King, and his avarice, 
overcame all scruples. Frederick, happy that his 
wishes were now realized, vigorously attacked the 
enemy at Burkersdorf, while the Russians held 
their position, as agreed, a little distance off. Daun, 
who was ignorant of this arrangement, feared Czer- 
nichef and his strong force more than he did the 
King, and sent a considerable force against him. 
This was just what Frederick wished. This division 
of the enemy's strength made the battle easier, and 
the result was a complete victory for the Prussians. 
When the Austrians approached, the Russians re- 
tired, and on the day after the battle they began 
their homeward march. 

Frederick now set out for Schweidnitz, and most 
skilfully and closely invested that fortress. His 
impatience at the slow progress of his laborers ex- 
cited him to such a degree as to threaten serious 
physical consequences, and one day he decided to be 
bled in the open field. He inquired if there were a 
surgeon near by, and one was brought. The King 
alighted, took off his coat, seated himself, and the 
operation began. The cut was already bleeding, 
when a shell struck near the King, and sprinkled 
[132] 



^THE DAWN OF PEACES 

him and the surgeon with blood. The surgeon 
fled as fast as he could, leaving the King sitting. 
The latter was perfectly composed, and ordered him 
to come back and bandage the cut, adding some of 
his very emphatic threats. The surgeon finally re- 
turned in a very uneasy frame of mind. " I know 
your heart is in the right place ; bandage the cut," 
said the King. Half scared to death, the surgeon 
did as he was ordered with trembling hands, after 
which the King mounted and rode away. 

Notwithstanding all of Frederick's blustering the 
laborers made slow progress on account of the hard- 
ness of the soil, which the King did not take into 
consideration. He visited his displeasure principally 
upon his engineers. He spoke very harshly with a 
staff captain of that corps about the trenches, and at 
last in a burst of temper exclaimed : " Go to the d — 1 ! " 

The officer quietly withdrew, but the King called 
him back and said : " I wish that you would take 
charge of the work and then it may get on." 

The officer at once replied : " Your Majesty, I am 
gratified that you will allow me to have a leg or an 
arm shot off before I leave the service, but I have 
great need of both, and beside, it will save Your 
Majesty the expense of carrying me back home." 

The King was not displeased at his boldness, but 
laughed and ordered him back to work and hand- 
somely remembered him. 

[133] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

The investment was now rapidly pushed on all 
sides and the fall of the fortress was inevitable. At 
this time Frederick had his headquarters at Peters- 
waldau, not far from Reichenbach, where he was 
much surprised by a sudden attack from the besieged. 
After the Austrians were driven back the Prussians 
strengthened their position, and the King decided 
that on the following day he would celebrate the 
victory by a general parade of the army. Frederick 
rode out from Peterswaldau with the Prussian princes 
to view the spectacle. A colonel from Schwerin^ 
seeing him approach, rode quickly forward to re- 
ceive his orders, but had the misfortune to be thrown 
from his horse, which stumbled. He was uninjured, 
and his horse waited quietly for him. The colonel 
remounted and galloped to meet the King as if 
nothing had happened. As they met, the King 
said : " You have had a fall ! " 

" Yes, but not from your favor.'' 

" No,'' was the King s reply, " only out of the 
saddle into the sand." 

The storming of Schweidnitz was successful and 
Frederick looked for important results to come from 
its fall, especially hoping it would revive the old 
battle spirit of his troops. This proved to be the 
case. Almost immediately came the glad tidings that 
Prince Henry, on the twenty-ninth of October, had 
completely routed the enemy in a sanguinary battle 
['34] 



^THE DAWN OF PEACES 

at Freiberg, Saxony. This was the last battle in 
the Seven Years' War, and good fortune did not 
again desert Frederick. As gloriously and success- 
fully as he had maintained himself against the 
Austrians and Russians did Henry in the last 
year of the war maintain himself against the 
French, notwithstanding the meagre help he re- 
ceived. Though often forced to fall back, yet he 
always managed to advance again and successfully 
cope with the enemy. He so misled them by his 
extraordinary craftiness that his marches and counter- 
marches were a puzzle to the French. It was due 
to his military discipline and strategic skill that he 
won V ictories over a much stronger force at Billings- 
hausen, Wilhelmsthal, and Luttenberg. Next he 
captured the capital at Cassel, November i, 1762, 
and was preparing to take advantage of the favor- 
able season to drive the French over the Rhine, 
when his plans were interrupted by an unlooked-for 
event. France asked for peace, and the King made 
no delay in seizing the opportunity to secure what 
he had long desired. The treaty between France, 
England, and Prussia was formally negotiated 
February 10, 1763. 



[^35] 



Chapter XIV 
End of the Seven Tears' War 




'ARIA THERESA and the Elector 
of Saxony realized that under such cir- 
cumstances as these they were in no 
condition to continue the war alone 
against Prussia and that, whether they would or 
not, they must take steps to conclude a treaty of 
peace. The Seven Years' War had convinced both 
of them that they could never take beautiful Silesia 
from the hands of their brave enemies, much less 
humble the Margrave of Brandenburg. So they 
extended the hand of peace to the King. The 
hunting castle of Hubertsburg^ was selected as the 
place for the negotiations and there the pleni- 
potentiaries made peace, the King of Prussia being 
represented by Minister Von Herzberg. As he had 
fought many enemies in the field he had to make 
treaties with many, and they were concluded in such 
an honorable and skilful manner that Frederick was 
once more in possession of Silesia, and the countv^ of 



1 This castle is near Wermadorf, Saxony, twenty-five miles east of Leipsic. 

[136] 



^END OF THE WAR^ 

Glatz did not lose a foot of its old possessions. 
The treaty was signed February 15, 1763, and 
caused unbounded enthusiasm in city and country. 
*Those who have not experienced the horrors of war 
have little idea of the true significance of the word 
" peace." It recalls Schiller's beautiful words : 
" Gentle peace, sweet concord, abide with us. May 
that day never come when war's hordes shall de- 
vastate this quiet valley and when the evening sky, 
tinged with roseate hues, shall reflect the dreadful 
glare of burning villages and towns.'' 

Crowned with victory, the King returned to his 
capital amid the rejoicings of his subjects. The 
Berliners had arranged an ovation for the home- 
coming hero. In view of the devastation and misery 
caused by the war he declined an immediate reception. 
On the thirtieth of March, a little later than he had 
intended, he entered his capital in the dusk of even- 
ing, remained there a short time, and then hastened 
on to Potsdam and Charlottenburg. At the latter 
place he one day summoned his musicians and fixed 
a time at which they should sing the chorale, "We 
praise thee, O God." 

They assembled punctually, supposing that the 
church would be filled with a large and brilliant 
audience. Instead of this, the King alone appeared, 
seated himself, and gave them the signal. The 
singers began, and each one did his utmost to con- 

[137] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

tribute to the success of the performance. As the 
music of the hymn of praise, majestic as a song of 
cherubim, filled the house of God, Frederick was so 
affected that he reverently fell upon his knees and 
with tears in his eyes expressed his sincere gratitude 
to the Almighty for his many deliverances and for 
the help which had been vouchsafed him through 
the long and dreadful war now so happily ended. 
It was thus the victorious King celebrated his peace 
festival, and his devout attitude was so impressive 
that there was not a dry eye among the singers. 
Never before had they taken part in such a solemn 
and inspiring ceremony. 

Frederick always spoke freely of the battles in 
the long war and liked to hear the accounts of his 
generals. On one occasion General Seydlitz was 
dining with him at Potsdam. After a general con- 
versation, mention was made of the battle of Ross- 
bach, and the King said : " My dear Seydlitz, I am 
greatly indebted to you, to your officers, and to 
your whole division for that victory." 

Seydlitz replied : " Excuse me. Your Majesty, not 
alone my division, but my chaplain, Balke, also 
conducted himself most gallantly. When the 
battle began he buckled on a sword and fought 
splendidly.'' 

"You don't say so," said the King. " He must 
be rewarded in some special way for such unusual 



^END OF THE WAR^ 

service. The Provost^ has just died. Balke shall 
have the place." The chaplain was summoned to 
Potsdam, and was not a little surprised to receive 
an appointment to the vacant position. 

The King extended his generosity not only in 
individual cases, but all over the country. There 
was urgent necessity to awaken fresh life and secure 
prosperity once more for the exhausted provinces. 
The war, which had been conducted with great 
bitterness and sometimes barbarity, had not only 
greatly distressed Prussia, but had left all Germany 
in a wretched plight. An entire circuit of towns 
and villages had been destroyed. The luxuriant 
fields had been trodden down by hoofs of horses 
and were lying waste. Entire villages were destitute 
of men, for their former residents had either been 
killed or driven away by the enemy. The Prussian 
army alone lost over two hundred thousand men dur- 
ing the war, and its allies, England, Hanover, Hesse, 
and others one hundred and sixty thousand more. 
The losses of the enemy were still greater, for they 
amounted to more than half a million men. Aus- 
tria lost one hundred and forty thousand, Russia, 
one hundred and twenty thousand, France twenty- 
two thousand, Sweden, twenty-five thousand, and 
the German Reich, twenty-eight thousand. 



1 An ecclesiastical officer. 

['39] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

Under such circumstances, it is not strange there 
were not enough men left in the country to till the 
soil. Women had to do that work, and in some 
places there were not women enough. Conse- 
quently the King issued an order to take a hun- 
dred of the strongest boys from the Potsdam Orphan 
Asylum, and set them at work in these depopulated 
locaHties. He devised still other means to make 
up this lack of men. He released Prussians from 
the army, filled their places with foreign recruits, 
and then ordered that as few Prussians as possible 
should be enlisted until the deficiency was made 
good. The number thus released was thirty thou- 
sand seven hundred and eighty. Every effort was 
made to assist them in the habits of self-reliance 
and industrial life, and orders were also issued that 
soldiers in such districts should be allowed to marry 
without a license from the authorities. Many build- 
ings abandoned by their owners were going to ruin, 
and more than thirteen thousand houses in Prussia 
were destroyed. Fertile fields after the war looked 
like a barren wilderness, for there was a lack of 
seed-corn and products, and implements of every 
kind needed to put them in good condition again. 

Gentry and peasants alike had been plundered 
by so many armies, and had lost so much by con- 
tributions and confiscations, that they were utterly 
destitute. The enemy had left them nothing but 
[140] 



^END OF THE WAR^ 

their lives. The country was not the only sufferer. 
Prosperity was ruined and trade was dead in the 
cities. There was no longer any regard for habits 
of order, and the police administration was wretched. 
The courts of justice and financial institutions had 
been reduced to inaction by these frequent inva- 
sions of the enemy. The silence of the laws had 
made the people reckless and produced in them an 
uncontrollable greed of gain. Nobles, merchants, 
farmers, and laborers raised the prices of their com- 
modities, and their demands were exorbitant beyond 
belief The situation called for drastic remedies, 
and the King, who was greatly concerned over the 
country's condition, did not hesitate to apply them 
in a practical way. He realized that the Provinces 
could not recover unaided, and so he decided to 
help them. By his orders Silesia had to contribute 
three million ; Pomerania and Neumark, one million 
four hundred thousand ; the Electorate, seven hun- 
dred thousand ; the Duchy of Cleve, one hundred 
thousand, and the province of Prussia, eight hun- 
dred thousand thalers. Beside this, he distributed 
among the most needy localities twenty-five thousand 
bushels of rye and meal, and seventeen thousand 
bushels of oats taken from the public storehouses. 
He went even further than this. He reduced the 
army, and distributed thirty-five thousand horses 
among the peasants and gentry. In those parts of 

[HI] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

the country which had suffered most severely dur- 
ing the war^ particularly Crossen, Hohenstein, and 
Halberstadt, the taxes were reduced one-half. In 
Silesia the payment of taxes was suspended for six 
months, and in Pomerania and Neumark for two 
years. The gentry also received considerable sums 
of money for the arrangement of their affairs and 
the payment of debts, for their resources had been 
so greatly impaired, money was so scarce, and credit 
so uncertain, that there was otherwise no hope for 
their recovery.^ 

It was not only cities and villages that were 
ruined during this war. The discipline of the army 
was so impaired by dissoluteness that more strin- 
gent regulations had to be adopted. The work, 
however, proceeded so slowly that permanent re- 
sults were not apparent until 1775. From that 
time the army displayed the genuine military spirit. 
Everything except the regulations governing enlist- 
ments had been changed. 

It was natural that by the reduction of the 
army many a deserving soldier found himself badly 
off. When the free battalions were organized, a 
blacksmith's journeyman in a Silesian village enlisted 



1 The translator has taken the fibert^* to omit a few paragraphs in this connec- 
tion, setting forth some of Frederick's financial and economical methods for the 
restoration of prosperit)'. They have only a local interest, and would hardly be 
entertaining for young people, 

[142] 



^END OF THE WAR^ 

in the one commanded by Quintus Icilius, became 
a corporal, and subsequently was promoted to the 
position of major and was given the decoration for 
merit. After the battalion was disbanded, he was 
left to shift for himself, and as he could find noth- 
ing better went back to the smithy, but still wore 
his decoration. Seydlitz found him at work, and 
inquired where he got that decoration. He told 
his story, and Seydlitz told it to the King. Quin- 
tus was in attendance upon the King, and, one day 
at table, he said to him : 

" Quintus, you had some fine specimens of offi- 
cers in your battalion. There is, for instance, a 
blacksmith journeyman who has decorated himself 
with a service badge. How did that Cyclops come 
by it?" 

Quintus replied : " I remember the brave fellow. 
I wish Your Majesty had had more such smiths in 
the campaign. This one certainly did well, and 
Your Majesty recognized his service and gave him 
the decoration in Saxony." 

" Why have you not told me about him before ? " 
said the King. 

Quintus answered : " It has been done, but Your 
Majesty at the time was much prejudiced against 
the free battalions and struck the name of this 
brave fellow oflf the list." 

The King smiled and shaking his head, said: 

[H3] 



^FREDERICK THE GREATS 

" He has had hard luck and I must help him some 
way. Now, listen, I will give the man a pension 
for service, but he must not wear his decoration 
when at work and he must keep quiet until I call 
him." 

The quondam major shortly after this received a 
kindly letter, which assured him a generous pension 
and made him the happiest of men. 

Considering the care with which this sagacious 
sovereign looked after matters in general as well as 
individual affairs, and devoted himself to the hum- 
blest as well as the greatest in his dominions, it is 
not surprising that the ruined towns and villages, 
and the waste lands as well, soon presented a changed 
aspect, but it took years before the sorely oppressed 
country recovered entirely from the devastating 
effects of war. With the increasing industry of the 
people, however, and the unfailing encouragement 
and assistance of the King in advancing the interests 
of commerce, trade, and agriculture, Prussia in time 
rose to a higher degree of prosperity and culture 
than ever before. 



[H4] 



^ppmtrtj: 



The following is a chronological statement of the principal 
events in the Seven Years' War : 



Frederick invades Saxony. 
Frederick's first victory at Lobositz, 
Frederick invades Bohemia. 
Frederick defeats the Austrians at Prague. 
Frederick defeated by the Austrians at Kollin. 
French victory at Hastenbeck. 
Russian victory at Grossjagendorf. 
Frederick's great victory at Rossbach. 
Frederick defeats the Austrians at Leuthen. 
Frederick defeats the Russians at Zomdorf. 
Frederick defeated by Austrians at Hoch- 

kirch. 
French defeated at Minden. 
Frederick defeated at Kunersdorf. 
Frederick defeats the Austrians at Liegnitz. 
Frederick's great victory at Torgau. 
Death of Czarina Elizabeth and accession of 

Peter III. 
Peter makes peace v^ith Frederick. 
Peter assassinated and succeeded by Catharine. 
Frederick's victory at Burkersdorf. 
Victory of Prince Henry at Freiburg. Last 

battle in the Seven Years' War. 
Peace between France, England, and Prussia. 
Peace of Hubertsburg and close of the war. 





1756 


October i. 


1756 




1757 


May 6, 


1757 


June 1 8, 


1757 


July 26, 


1757 


August 30, 


1757 


November 5, 


1757 


December 5, 


1757 


August 25, 


1758 


October 14, 


1758 


August I, 


1759 


August 12, 


1760 


August 15, 


1760 


November 3, 


1760 


January 5, 


1762 


March 5, 


1762 


July 17, 


1762 


July 21, 


1762 


October 29, 


1762 


February 10, 


1763 


February 15, 


1763 



10 



[HS] 



LIFE STORIES FOR 
YOUNG PEOPLE 

BIOGRAPHICAL ROMANCES 

TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN BT 

GEORGE P. UPTON 

A neiv^ interesting^ and ^ery useful series that njoill he found especially 
suitable for school libraries and for supplementary reading 

THE books in this series are translated from the German, be- 
cause in that country a specialty is made of really desirable 
reading for the young. Eight titles are now ready and more will 
follow. 

Their simplicity and accuracy make them very useful for every 
school library in the grades. 

For parents who feel disposed to give their children books that 
provide a mild element of historical information, as well as first- 
class entertainment, the little books will prove a veritable find. 

The ^Mife-stories " retain the story form throughout, and embody 
in each chapter a stirring event in the life of the hero or the action 
of the time. The dramatis personae are actual characters, and the 
facts in the main are historically correct. They are therefore both 
entertaining and instructive, and present biography in its most at- 
tractive form for the young. 

A FULL LIST OF THE TITLES IS GIVEN ON THE NEXT PAGE 

The work of translation has been done by Mr. George P. 
Upton, whose ^ ^Memories" and Lives of Beethoven, Haydn, and 
Liszt, from the German of Max Mueller and Dr. Nohl, have been 
so successful. 

Each is a small square i6mo in uniform binding, with four 

illustrations. Each 6o cents net, [over] 



LIFE STORIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 

FULL LIST OF TITLES 

Frederick the Great 

The Maid of Orleans 

The Little Dauphin ^ 

Maria Theresa 

William Tell 

Mozart 

Beethoven 

JoHANN Sebastian Bach 

'* These narratives have been well calculated for youthful minds 
past infancy,- and Mr. Upton's version is easy and idiomatic/' — 
The Nation. 

** He is a delightful writer, clearness, strength, and sincerity marking 
everything to which he puts his hand. He has translated these little 
histories from the German in a way that the reader knows has con- 
served all the strength of the original. '"" — Chicago E-vening Post. 

'^They are written in simple, graphic style, handsomely illustrated, 
and will be read with delight by the young people for whose benefit 
they have been prepared.'' — Chicago Tribune. 

** The work of translation seems to have been well done, and these 
little biographies are very well fitted for the use of young people. . . . 
The volumes are compact and neat, and are illustrated sufficiently but 
not too elaborately." — Springfield Republican. 

** These books are most entertaining and vastly more wholesome than 
the story books with which the appetites of young readers are for the 
most part satisfied." — Indianapolis Journal, 

OF ALL BOOKSELLERS OR OF THE PUBLISHERS 

A. C. McCLURG & CO., CHICAGO 



SfP 21 1905 



